Questions and Replies
22 May 2023 - NW1378
Tarabella - Marchesi, Ms NI to ask the Minister of Higher Education, Science and Innovation
What (a) are the details of the profit revenue that has been generated from Cannabidiol (CBD) as at the latest date for which information is available, (b) is the actual variation in percentage between use of the CBD for recreational purposes versus its use for health, (c) total number of jobs have been created from the CBD economy and (d) total number of (i) women and (ii) persons living with disabilities are employed in the specified sector?
Reply:
a) South Africa is in the process of developing the Cannabis Industrialisation Masterplan, which is led by the Department of Agriculture, Land Reform, and Rural Development (DALRRD). The Master Plan has several pillars in regulatory systems, sustainable seed supply systems, research and innovation, enterprise and suppliers and market development, and education and communication/awareness – lead by the Departments of Justice (DOJC); Health ((NDOH); Agriculture, Land Reform, and Rural Development (DALRRD); Science and Innovation (DSI); Small Business Development (DSBD); Trade, Industry and Competitions (DTIC); Social Development (DSD); and Government Communication and Information System (GCIS) respectively. The South African cannabis market is attested to be R28 billion, however the DTIC reported to the Master Plan Committee that a service provider has been appointed to investigate the actual economic potential and actual revenue of cannabis per sector in South Africa.
b) The DSI’s African Natural Medicines Platform has documented that the entire cannabis plant can be used for health purposes. It is the tetrahydrocannabinol that is generally used of recreational purposes through inhalation (smoking) and not the other ingestible products. The projected Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) for health and recreation is 30% and 31% by 2027 respectively.
c) It is projected that a total of 900 000 general population and 250 000 traditional health practitioners may be part of decent jobs created through aspects of the value-chains including primary production, product development, agro-processing, manufacturing, distribution, warehousing, marketing, and commercialization. The Presidency has commissioned the Industrial Development Corporation (IDC) to fast-track the approval of the Masterplan including documentation of key economic milestones reached.
(d) There is no data on the total number of people employed in the cannabis industry in South Africa. It is the mandate of the DTIC to investigate the economic potential of the Cannabis Industry, including women, youth and people living with disabilities, per sector, e.g., medicines, textile, cosmetics, etc.
22 May 2023 - NW1453
Mogale, Mr T to ask the Minister of Higher Education, Science and Innovation
Given that Indigenous Knowledge Registration Systems (IKRS) have been cited by his department as pivotal systems in the preservation of indigenous knowledge, (a) what kind of indigenous knowledge is stored in the specified systems and (b) how accessible are the IKRS to the (i) general public and (ii) academic populace?
Reply:
a) What kind of indigenous knowledge is stored in the specified system?
The knowledge in the system is constructed around indigenous claims of communities across the country. It includes knowledge on African Traditional Medicine, indigenous food, agriculture, astronomy, arts and culture, governance and other Indigenous Knowledge disciplines. The current metadata makes provision for multimedia recordings of African Traditional Medicine and indigenous food.
The other knowledge in the system is the Pharmacopoeia, that is, a list detailing various medicinal plants and their treatments to different ailments.
b) How accessible are the IKRS to (i) general public and (ii) academic populance.
The system has different levels of access, that is, open access and confidential access.
(i) The public
The public can access the National Indigenous Systems Office (NIKSO) page. It is constituted by the 2019 IK Act in all 11 official written languages.
The IK contents of community’s multimedia recordings is classified for confidential access only and it is not open to the public as the IK Regulations governing such access has not yet been Gazetted.
(ii) The academic populace
The academic populance can access the Pharmacopoeia and the NIKSO page.
22 May 2023 - NW1379
Tarabella - Marchesi, Ms NI to ask the Minister of Higher Education, Science and Innovation
(1)Of the research work conducted by South African institutions including research conducted by the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research, how much work has resulted in Intellectual Properties (IPs) in the past five years; (2) what total number of (a) IPs have resulted in job opportunities and (b) jobs have been created in the past five years; (3) what total number of IPs are not being utilised for the benefit of South Africans; (4) which IP can be used to benefit South Africans in terms of infrastructure, namely housing, roads and energy, but are not utilised for the purpose they were researched for; (5) what total amount has his department spent in the past five years on IPs which are not utilised for the benefit of South Africans?
Reply:
1. The Intellectual Property Rights from Publicly Financed Research and Development Act (IPR Act) was enacted in 2010 with an objective to ensure that intellectual property (IP) emanating from publicly funded research and development (R&D) is identified, protected, utilised, and commercialised for the benefit of the Republic.
In terms IPR Act, institutions (including Higher Education Institutions and Science Councils) must report to the National Intellectual Property Management Office (NIPMO), a specialised service delivery unit with the Department of Science and Innovation, on all matters pertaining to the IP contemplated in the Act, including all IP from which it elects to obtain statutory protection and the state of commercialisation thereof.
These biannual reports are referred to as IP disclosures (in other words research outputs which could be translated ideas into products, processes and services).
Over the past 5 years the following number of IP disclosures were reported to NIPMO:
Financial year |
Number of IP disclosures reported |
Number of institutions |
2018/19 |
300 |
24 |
2019/20 |
248 |
27 |
2020/21 |
226 |
24 |
2021/22 |
241 |
21 |
2022/23 |
217 |
27 |
2. The Department of Science and Innovation conducted a National Survey of Intellectual Property and Technology Transfer (IP and TT survey) at publicly funded research institutions. The inaugural baseline survey was published in 2017, for the survey period 2008 to 2014. The second IP and TT survey for the period 2014 to 2018, was published in 2021 (Copy of the survey reports available on DSI website at: https://www.dst.gov.za/index.php/resource-center/rad-reports/tt-ip-survey )
In terms of the second IP and TT survey for the period 2014 to 2018, institutions reported over 1250 actionable IP disclosures, over 900 granted patents, 300 granted trademarks, 65 registered designs and 45 new plant breeders’ rights applications.
Institutions further reported that they concluded, over the survey period 2014 to 2018, 290 IP licences, 235 of which yield revenues of R185 million. More than R23 million in commercialisation revenue was paid to over 270 IP creators or enablers situated within these institutions. Institutions yet further reported that they formed 55 start-up/spin out companies, which employed over 320 people.
A total of 100 start-up/spin-out companies were formed since 2008, 95% of which were from HEIs. Of the 100, 72 remained operational as of 2018.
The Department will embark on the third National IP and TT Survey in the 2022/23 financial year for the survey period 2019 to 2022.
3. Section 5(1)(e) of the IPR Act, provides that a recipient must refer disclosures for which it elects not to retain ownership or not to obtain statutory protection to NIPMO within 30 days of it making such an election. These referrals are made on an IP1 Form as prescribed by the Act.
As part of submitting an IP1 Form to NIPMO, the recipient must select the "reasons for referral”. The options available are: 1) Put into the public domain; 2) Not statutorily protectable; 3) Abandonment of IP: Unfavourable Search and/or examination; and 4) Abandonment of IP: Lack of market and commercial potential.
If a recipient states as reason for its referral “Put into the public domain” or “Abandonment of IP: Lack of market and commercial potential” it is compulsory for such IP disclosure to be advertised on the Innovation Bridge Portal for at least 45 days prior to NIPMO approving the abandonment of the IP.
The Innovation Bridge Portal is an initiative of the Department of Science and Innovation, supported by the World Bank Group, and the Department of Small Business Development and hosted by the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (access to the Innovation Bridge Portal at https://www.innovationbridge.info/ibportal/)
The purpose of the Innovation Bridge Portal is to be “an open innovation platform that brings entrepreneurship ecosystem stakeholders together for the benefit of innovators and entrepreneurs. It seeks to promote collaboration amongst public and private ecosystem stakeholders, to become that “one-stop shop” repository of information, opportunity, and network connection”.
Over the past 5 years the following number of IP1 referrals were submitted to NIPMO and approved for abandonment:
Financial year |
Number of IP1 referrals reported to NIPMO |
2018/19 |
30 |
2019/20 |
37 |
2020/21 |
18 |
2021/22 |
28 |
2022/23 |
29 |
Furthermore, Sections 14(2) and 14(3) of the IPR Act make provision that NIPMO must conduct reviews of non-commercialised IP in consultation with the recipient. Should it come to NIPMO’s attention, during the review process, that some IP may be commercialised, NIPMO must engage in further consultations with the recipient in an endeavour to ensure that the IP is commercialised. In this regard NIPMO has drafted and published NIPMO Interpretation Note 12 entitled “Procedure for the review of non-commercialised intellectual property at institutions”.
NIPMO initiated, as part of a pilot, the review of non-commercialised IP of its first institution in 2022/23. The pilot results necessitated NIPMO to consider alternative approaches to follow when engaging on non-commercialised IP. These alternative approaches will be researched and implemented in 2023/24 as part of the second stage of the pilot.
4. As at 25 April 2023, there are the following number of inventions being advertised on the Innovation Bridge Portal for further development and/or uptake:
Number of inventions |
Industry/Sector |
28 |
Electricity, gas, steam and air conditioning supply |
16 |
Manufacturing |
12 |
Water supply; sewerage, waste management and remediation activities |
7 |
Mining and quarrying |
3 |
Transportation and storage |
3 |
Construction |
5. NIPMO has two funding mechanism to assist with the protection, and technology transfer of IP emanating from publicly financed research and development, namely the i) IP Fund and ii) OTT Support Fund.
(i) IP Fund
Section 13 of the IPR Act established the IP Fund to provide financial support to institutions (higher education institutions and science councils) for statutory protection and maintenance of their IP/IP rights.
NIPMO developed and published NIPMO Guideline 2 entitled “The Intellectual Property Fund Rebate Guideline” to define the scope of assistance. In accordance to this guideline NIPMO can provide up to 50% rebate for costs incurred by the institution depending on availability of funds from the South African National Treasury.
(ii) OTT Support Fund
The Office of Technology Transfer (OTT) Support Fund was established in 2011 in response to the mandate given to NIPMO by the IPR Act to support i) the establishment and maintenance of OTT, ii) building human capacity and capabilities within these offices and to iii) ensure that IP is identified, protected, utilised and commercialised for the benefit of South Africans.
Since the establishment of the OTT Support Fund, NIPMO has committed over R270 million to 35 institutions in support of activities such as human capacity development, access to IP Analysis Tools, conducting of IP audits, hosting of IP awareness activities, and attending NIPMO endorsed trainings.
To date, over 160 contract positions were (fully or partially) funded by NIPMO at OTTs since its establishment.
In 2019, NIPMO recognised the need to support more activities relating to the commercialisation of IP and has since committed over R14 million for activities including contract drafting, techno economic feasibility analysis, market assessments, business plan development and technology marketing relating to IP disclosed to NIPMO.
Due to the nature of IP and long lead time it takes to translate a research output into a commercial success, it is not possible to quantify the total amount the Department has spent in the past five years on IP which are not utilized for the benefit of South Africans.
It can be reported that the Department has recently started actively tracking the number of disclosures reported to NIPMO that are licensed for the first time as part of its Annual Performance Plan. For 2021/22, 5 institutions licensed 20 disclosures for the first time and in 2022/23 6 institutions licensed 17 disclosures for the first time.
In addition, NIPMO undertook a commercialisation trend snapshot for 2021/22. As part of OTT Support Fund requirements, NIPMO receives bi-annual/annual reports on active agreements from OTTs. These reports cover all activities within the OTTs and specifically its commercialisation endeavours.
For the 2021/22 financial year, NIPMO analysed reports received from 16 institutions. Of the 16 institutions, 9 (or 56%) concluded an IP license or were in discussions to conclude such in 2021/22. The top four sectors of commercialisation activities for 2021/22, following the analysis of the OTT Support Fund reports, are i) Medical and Health (32%), ii) Computer related services and Electronics (17%), iii) Food technologies/services (8%) and iv) Energy (7%).
22 May 2023 - NW1182
Siwisa, Ms AM to ask the Minister of Public Works and Infrastructure
What is the total number of buildings that his department has identified as suitable to be converted into student accommodation since the last report of property that was handed over to the Department of Higher Education, Science and Innovation?
Reply:
The Minister of Public Works and Infrastructure
The Department identified several properties and vacant land parcels located around the universities in nine (9) out the eleven (11) Regions and a total of 68 properties were identified. The lists of properties were shared with DHET and site visits were conducted in some properties for assessments and verification.
Below is the summary of identified properties:
REGION | IDENTIFIED PROPERTIES | VISITED & VERIFIED | NOT VISITED / VERIFIED |
Port Elizabeth | 13 Properties | 10 | 3 Properties to be visited |
Durban | 21 Properties | 21 | |
Polokwane | 8 Properties identified | 0 | 8 Properties to be visited |
Mmabatho | 17 Properties identified | 8 | 9 Properties still to be visited |
Johannesburg | 1 Block of flats identified | 1 | |
Bloemfontein | 1 Block of flats identified | 1 | |
Kimberly | No properties identified | ||
Mthatha | No properties identified | ||
Pretoria | 1 Block of flats identified | 0 | 1 property to be visited |
Nelspruit | 4 Properties identified | 0 | 4 Properties to be visited |
Cape Town | 2 Properties identified | 2 | |
Total | 68 | 43 | 25 |
22 May 2023 - NW1319
Mohlala, Ms MR to ask the Minister of Water and Sanitation
In light of his limited interventions within the intergovernmental relations framework, what other options are available to mitigate the total collapse of the bulk water and sanitation infrastructure in the Republic?
Reply:
The reliability of municipal water and sanitation services is generally deteriorating, evidenced by the Green Drop and Blue Drop assessments. To mitigate the total collapse of services/infrastructure, the Department of Water and Sanitation (DWS) is strengthening its regulatory role over municipal water and sanitation services.
During this financial year we will be consulting on updated and more comprehensive norms and standards for water and sanitation services, in terms of the Water Services Act. We will also publish a National Regulatory Dashboard showing the extent of compliance with the national norms and standards for water services for all Water Service Authorities, drawing on existing monitoring information. We are also in the process of introducing standardised regulatory enforcement protocols to be implemented by all our regional offices, to make our regulatory actions more consistent.
One of the underlying causes of the decline in municipal water services, both in terms of the reliability of service delivery and in terms of financial sustainability, is the non-implementation of certain key requirements of the Water Services Act by municipalities. The Act distinguishes between Water Services Authorities and Water Service Providers and requires municipalities to separately manage and account for the roles of Water Services Authority and Water Services Provider. It further requires Water Services Authorities to ensure that Water Service Providers provide access to efficient and sustainable water services to everyone. Almost all Water Service Authorities have been failing to do this.
To address this, we are considering introducing some amendments to the Water Services Act, with the aim of further clarifying the roles, responsibilities and functions of Water Services Authorities and Water Services Providers; setting minimum standards for the functioning of Water Services Providers which must be enforced by Water Services Authorities; and providing the Minister with powers to regulate these matters. We will be consulting on these proposed amendments with a view to taking them through the cluster system to Cabinet during this financial year.
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22 May 2023 - NW1452
Mogale, Mr T to ask the Minister of Higher Education, Science and Innovation
Considering that in numerous presentations by his department it was cited that the Square Kilometre Array (SKA) project will bring about skills development and employment opportunities to the Republic, (a) what total number of job opportunities are prospectively planned for the eventual roll-out of the SKA project, (b) what kind of skills will be developed in the process and during the roll-out of the SKA project, (c) by what date does he envisage the specified aspirations will be realised and (d) how will the SKA project impact the youth in townships and rural areas?
Reply:
a) The basis for determining the number of job opportunities that will arise from the deployment and operation of the SKA project is guided by analysis that was done on the job opportunities[1] that were created through the establishment and operation of the South African MeerKAT telescope – a precursor to the SKA telescope. An independent economic modelling exercise indicated that the MeerKAT construction program for the period 2012 to 2022 and the operational phase since 2018 has created 5 606 direct job opportunities. The model that was used to calculate the job opportunities created through MeerKAT was applied to the construction and construction and operation of the SKA telescope over the next 10 years. With the funding that is likely to flow to South Africa, it is estimated that a further 16 475 job opportunities will be created. This number will continuously be reviewed to always ensure the best available data. In addition, appropriate monitoring has been put in place to enable reporting of direct job opportunities that will flow from SKA construction, due to commence this year.
b) The scope of skills development is broad and is further supported by strategic skills development interventions undertaken through the Human Capital Development (HCD) Bursary Programme of the South African Radio Astronomy Observatory (SARAO). At a national level, the design and construction of the SKA will enhance the development of skills in data science; compute and big data storage technologies; electronic engineering; radio frequency engineering; software development; project management and systems engineering. These skills are extremely relevant in the 4th industrial revolution and are easily transferred as we witnessed when SARAO was appointed to coordinate the National Ventilator Project in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Additional skills development interventions undertaken within the Karoo ensure that these communities are able to participate meaningfully in the construction and operation of the SKA. This includes business development skills for local SMME’s, as well as artisan training (such as the training of electricians), which has catalysed the development of an Artisan Training Centre in Carnarvon.
c) Projections on job opportunities are based on a ten-year horizon, starting in 2023. However, skills development across the skills identified above has been ongoing since the commencement of the MeerKAT project.
d) Establishment of the SKA project in the Karoo provides a range of opportunities for the development of youth in rural communities surrounding the telescope. Already, learners are being supported through several interventions at schools, including science engagement; robotics programs; maths and science educator support; and school holiday programs. Learners who pass grade 12 and qualify to study a science or engineering related degree at university are granted bursaries by SARAO – so far, 34 learners from the local community have been awarded bursaries. A further 72 have been supported to study at TVET colleges. Following the development of the Astro-Tourism Strategy, SARAO is piloting a program to train youth in the Karoo as Astro-tourism guides – with the intention of exploiting potential Astro-tourism opportunities in the future. This will be enhanced through the establishment of the SKA Science Tourism Visitor Centre and this project is currently going through the detailed engineering design phase. SARAO participates in various outreach programs that are organised by the Department of Science and Innovation and its entities for the youth from the townships.
-
1 job opportunity = 1 full time equivalent (FTE) year ↑
22 May 2023 - NW1365
Powell, Ms EL to ask the Minister of Human Settlements
(1)With reference to her reply to question 546 on 22 March 2023, (a) to which position has Mr Paul Maselo been appointed in her department and (b) what are the full details of all candidates (i) shortlisted and (ii) interviewed for the position occupied by the specified person?
Reply:
- (a) The Department has no records of the appointment of Mr Paul Maselo.
22 May 2023 - NW1377
Tarabella - Marchesi, Ms NI to ask the Minister of Higher Education, Science and Innovation
(1)Whether the Republic is currently conducting Cannabidiol (CBD) research; if not, why not; if so, (a) what specific outcomes are envisaged to be gained from the research, (b) what total number of studies are being conducted and (c) where do the scientists get the resources required for the research; (2) whether there is a particular strain that the scientists are working on; if not, what is the position in this regard; if so, what are the relevant details; (3) (a) who are the beneficiaries of CBD research and (b) what total number of (i) women and (ii) persons living with disabilities who own spin-off companies and/or start-ups have benefited from the research?
Reply:
1. Various government entities and private organisations are conducting research on cannabis species, i.e., hemp and marihuana. The Cannabis Industrialisation Masterplan prioritises research, development and innovation on CBD for various health conditions and industrial applications.
a) It is envisaged that various research outcomes from CDB research will yield commercial health products for the treatment of priority health conditions like cancers, diabetes, neurogenerative diseases, hypertension, depression and selected infectious diseases such as upper respiratory infections, etc.
b) The current landscape on cannabis research has been part of the discussion of the Masterplan Committees. The DSI’s African natural medicines consortium has been tasked to investigate this by the Presidency-commissioned team. However, the DSI is currently funding a consortium of researchers and indigenous knowledge holders at the Council for Industrial and Scientific Research, University of Free State, Agricultural Research Council, University of Pretoria, and University of KwaZulu-Natal.
c) The DSI funds a consortium of universities, science councils and indigenous knowledge holders. The Department of Small Business Development and Gauteng Department of Agriculture and Economic Development has also partnered with the DSI team led by the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research.
2. Various research consortia, both private and government-led teams are studying various cannabis strains found in and around South Africa. The DSI teams are interested in local land races of marihuana and hemp. The focus is on two new strains of hemp being investigated by the Agricultural Research Institute, and both Cannabis sativa and indica strains for industrial, medicinal, cosmeceutical and nutraceutical applications.
(3a) The DSI Consortium priorities indigenous knowledge holders as beneficiaries, whilst the Department of Small Business Development beneficiate rural or village farmers and small, medium and micro enterprises. There is currently no country data on the total number of research projects, beneficiaries and breakdown by gender, age or people living with disabilities. The Masterplan in general recognises the need to beneficiate these two groups, including women, youth and people living with disabilities.
(3b) The DSI in partnership with the DSB and Gauteng Department of Agriculture are supporting 20 small, medium and micro-enterprises at the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research.
(i) Of the 20 small, medium and micro-enterprises supported, 13 are owned and led by women who are or work indigenous knowledge holders.
(ii)There are no people living with disabilities, but there is a consideration to publish a directed call at people living with disabilities in the second phase of the programme.
The start-ups will receive two value-added products each and will have the potential of employing up to ten individuals each. A follow-up study will be conducted to evaluate their impact following upscaling of their projects. The DSI is funding infrastructure initiatives to support cannabis research in various universities and science councils.
22 May 2023 - NW1477
Matiase, Mr NS to ask the Minister of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development
Whether the concerns that were raised by the Portfolio Committee on Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development regarding the legitimacy of the ITB Holding company and its standing to undertake and/or perform business activities and transactions have been raised with the King of the Zulu nation; if not, why not; if so, what are the relevant details?
Reply:
No, This will be raised with the Chair of the ITB for further processing with the realm of the KwaZulu-Natal Ingonyama Trust Amendment Act, No. 9 of 1997.
19 May 2023 - NW1769
Thembekwayo, Dr S to ask the Minister of Human Settlements
(1) a) What steps has she taken to completely eradicate mud houses in Vezubuhle in the Thembisile Hani Local Municipality in Mpumalanga (b) on what date will basic services be provided for the specific area?
Reply:
a) I am informed by the Mpumalanga Department of Human Settlemnents that in the previous financial year, it met with all Municipalities requesting the list of areas with unsafe and unihabitable mud houses. The Department received a list with 501 mud houses in 20 wards from Thembisile Hani Local Municipality in April 2023. Ten (10) houses were received in Vezubuhle in Wards 18 and 20. According to the province, the list was only received in the current financial year, resulting in these projects not being planned and budgeted for 2023-2024. The Department shall prioritize the eradication of mud houses within the next Medium Term Strategic Framework (MTSF).
b) The Mpumalanga Department of Human Settlements is currently busy with the formalization of informal settlements in the area which will result in the provision of bulk infrastrucrture and basic services.
19 May 2023 - NW1315
Siwisa, Ms AM to ask the Minister of Social Development
What (a) number of child-headed houses has her department assisted in the 2022-23 financial year, (b) is the target for the 2023-24 financial year and (c) plans does her department have in place to ensure that (i) child-headed houses do not struggle with assistance and (ii) the children remain together without being separated due to illegal acts by corrupt social workers who put children under foster care with certain people for self-enrichment of the individuals?
Reply:
Province |
a |
b |
c (i) |
c (ii) |
Western Cape |
During the 2022-23 financial year, there were 28 child-headed households in the Western Cape Province, with a total of 54 children living within those homes. |
Services will be sustained to the CHH, by WC DSD as the service is not target-driven. New identified CHH will also be provided with services and assistance. |
The Western Cape Department of Social Development funds designated child protection organisations to provide support to children in child-headed households. This support includes loss and grief support; nutritional support; individual and group counselling; referral to after-school programmes, assistance with school fees exemptions. |
The NGOs rendering servcies in the WC to CHH reports on a quarterly basis regarding the children and DSD to site visits to ensure the children are not separated or placed in Foster Care with indivudals who will self-enrich. |
Northern Cape |
(a) No child-headed households were reported to the DSD Northern Cape for the 2022/ 23 Financial year. |
(b) The plan is to continuously raise awareness and inform Districts and Stakeholders that all child-headed householders must be reported to DSD, for Social Workers to conduct an investigation and submit a report to the HOD to declare the family a child-headed householder in terms of the Childrens Act. |
(c)(i) If a child-headed household is reported, the case will be referred to the Social Worker for statutory intervention and support, which will be done through the Risiha Child and Youth Care workers and monitored from the Provincial Office. |
(c)(ii) The monitoring will be done from the Children’s Unit to ensure that the Children do not struggle and that Children are kept together as far as possible to avoid irregular placement. |
Eastern Cape |
|
(b) The provincial Target for 2023/24 is120 |
(c)(i) The department is funding 46 RISIHA Programme (19 RISIHA sites and 27 Drop-in Centres) in all 08 districts. It is a Community Based Prevention and Early Intervention programme delivering Core Package of services which is a service delivery strategy consisting of seven (07) interrelated areas aiming at holistically addressing the needs of vulnerable children, including children in Child headed households. This programme provides a safety net for children within their communities offering access to meals when nutrition within the family is uncertain, psychosocial support, educational support by nurturing the child’s educational performance and helping them to overcome barriers such as uniform, transport and poor or no parental support for education. It is also strengthening the economic foundation of households by facilitating access to social security grants, entrepreneurial resources and other activities that improve their financial wellbeing. |
(c)(ii) The province implement Community Based Prevention and Early Intervention programme which aimed at preserving families. It is designed to support and sustain families, and to prevent removal of children from their home environment and communities. |
Free State |
(a)During the 2022/23 financial year seven (7) families with a total of fifteen (15) children received services in the province. |
(b)The department does not put a target regarding child headed households as the ideal situation is that children should not be responsible to manage households. All reported cases will however be assessed and supported. |
(c)(i) Guidance and Support are provided at “Intake” level, cases are assessed, and referrals are done for application for Top -up Child Support Grant.
|
C(ii) Children in Child Headed households will only be put in foster care if it is assessed that they need care and protection and that it will be in their best interest to be placed in foster care. This will be done if it is found that the eldest sibling is not fit to take care of the younger siblings. Siblings are not separated from each other and are placed in foster care with the same family if needed. |
Mpumalanga |
No response |
|||
Kwazulu-Natal |
No response |
|||
North West |
No response |
|||
Limpopo |
No response |
|||
Gauteng |
No response |
19 May 2023 - NW1335
Wilson, Ms ER to ask the Minister of Health
(1)What is the (a) total number of ambulances in each province, (b) short fall and (c) number available for a buffer; number available for a buffer; (2) what total number of ambulances are currently not in use in each province due to being involved in (a) accidents and (b)(i) repairs and (ii) maintenance; (3) what is the average waiting time for ambulances to transport patients in each province; (4) what is the ambulance to population ratio (a) nationally and (b) in each province?
Reply:
1. Table 1 below indicates (a) total number of ambulances in each province based on the ratio of 1 ambulance per 10 000 people, (b) short fall and (c) number available for a buffer is as follows:
Table 1:
Province |
(a) Total of No. ambulances |
(b) Short fall |
(c) Buffer |
Eastern Cape |
448 |
222 |
30 |
Free State |
138 |
152 |
42 |
Gauteng |
1 600 |
942 |
60 |
KwaZulu-Natal |
432 |
742 |
0 |
Limpopo |
262 |
348 |
0 |
Mpumalanga |
168 |
230 |
70 |
Northwest |
72 |
298 |
0 |
Northern Cape |
110 |
40 |
0 |
Western Cape |
120 |
460 |
0 |
2.The number of ambulances not in use, those due to accidents and those due repairs and maintenance per province as at week starting 24 April 2023 are as per table below. These numbers fluctuate daily.
Province |
(a) No. not in use due to accidents |
(b)(i) No. not in use due to repairs |
(b)(ii) No. not in use due to maintenance |
Eastern Cape |
15 |
136 |
52 |
Free State |
9 |
43 |
38 |
Gauteng |
12 |
64 |
89 |
KwaZulu-Natal |
15 |
10 |
25 |
Limpopo |
15 |
102 |
31 |
Mpumalanga |
12 |
25 |
24 |
Northwest |
8 |
57 |
42 |
Northern Cape |
5 |
35 |
61 |
Western Cape |
24 |
13 |
22 |
3. The average waiting time for ambulances to transport patients in each province assuming an immediate scene turnaround time is as follows:
PROVINCE |
AVERAGE WAITING TIME |
|
URBAN < 30 MINUTES |
RURAL < 60 MINUTES |
|
Eastern Cape |
41% |
69% |
Free State |
47% |
81% |
Gauteng |
55% |
85% |
KwaZulu-Natal |
43% |
52% |
Limpopo |
49% |
39% |
Mpumalanga |
65% |
69% |
North West |
81% |
73% |
Northern Cape |
78% |
74% |
Western Cape |
53% |
77% |
National Average |
56% |
67% |
(4) The ratio is currently being used (a) nationally and (b) in all provinces is 1 ambulance per 10 000 people.
END.
19 May 2023 - NW1301
Motsepe, Ms CCS to ask the Minister of Health
What are the reasons that his department is phasing out temporarily-employed nurses in clinics and hospitals in light of the huge shortages of nurses who are qualified to do the work across the Republic?
Reply:
The Provincial Departments of Health are required to phase out or terminate contracts of the temporarily employed nurses in clinics and hospitals funded through the Covid-19 Grant. National Treasury has since terminated the Covid-19 Grant with effect from 1 April 2023 amounting to R1.9 Billion. The National Department of Health is continuously engaging National Treasury to consider the prolongation of funding some or all of these terminated contracted employees (including the nurses) during this current financial year (i.e. 2023/2024). The discussions are continuing in this regard.
The Provincial Departments of Health are the employers of nurses’ categories and continuation of employment of permanent or temporary is based on service delivery needs. Due to budget constraints, Provincial Departments of Health had opted to continue to maintain and fund temporary employment of nurses who manage periodical campaigns (e.g. Immunization campaigns amongst others) through voted funds in the provinces.
END.
19 May 2023 - NW1304
Tafeni, Ms N to ask the Minister of Health
What steps of intervention has he taken in response to the security crisis facing healthcare facilities in the Republic beyond the usual tendering for security services that fail to avoid the security crises and (b) action has he taken in response to the St Georges Hospital case where a woman was gunned down inside the specified premises?
Reply:
a) The Minster of Health has appointed a Ministerial Task Team for safety and security in all public health facilities. The purpose of the task team was to assess the effectiveness of security measures and make recommendations. The task team has conducted security assessments at all public health facilities. Subsequently reports were drafted with the following recommendations:
- Improve security infrastructure like perimeter fencing and security guard rooms.
- Installation of security technology like CCTV cameras system, access control and alarm systems.
- Development of standardised security framework.
- Effective security contract management to hold Service Providers accountable.
- Regular security patrols at public health facilities by SAPS especially in hotspot facilities.
- Deployment of police reservists at hotspot public health facilities.
- Implementation of intelligence driven security measures at hotspot facilities
- Escort of EMS by SAPS to hotspot communities.
In this regard, memorandum of understanding was entered into between SAPS and NDoH to ensure regular patrols and deployment of police reservists.
Ministerial task team meet on regular basis to monitor the implementations of the recommendations and to assist provinces with any required security intervention.
b) St Georges Hospital is a private hospital under Life Healthcare group at Gqeberha in the Eastern Cape. The matter has not been reported to the National Department of Health for intervention. However, the National Department of Health keeps advising hospitals to improve security measures and to report the matter to their local police.
END.
19 May 2023 - NW1795
Madokwe, Ms P to ask the Minister of Police
What are the (a) statistics of SA Police Service officers found on the wrong side of the law in the past five years in each province and (b) crimes that were allegedly committed by the officers?
Reply:
Find reply here
19 May 2023 - NW1312
Thembekwayo, Dr S to ask the Minister of Health
What measures of intervention has he put in place in the Cape Winelands clinics in the Western Cape, that still request HIV patients to raise their clinic cards in front of other patients, exposing their status and thus making them vulnerable?
Reply:
The Western Cape Department of Health reports that it only has one visit card for all patients in all facilities. The information on the visit card will be the name, surname, contact number and address and the date of next appointment. No diagnosis is written on the visit card. Confidentiality is a priority to ensure person-centred care.
The only other card that patients carry with them is the card for TB patients enrolled in directly observed treatment short course (DOTS) and who receive medication at the facility. These patients do not queue at registration but report directly to the consulting room as a measure to fast-track their visit.
END.
19 May 2023 - NW1550
Essack, Mr F to ask the Minister of Mineral Resources and Energy
What is the current breakdown in terms of projected power output of all Independent Power Producers that have reached financial close across the Republic?
Reply:
The Renewable Energy Independent Power Producer Procurement Programme has to date contracted 115 Projects with a total capacity of 9218 MW. 92 projects have reached COD totalling 7209 MW and 24 Projects are still under construction.
19 May 2023 - NW1339
Masipa, Mr NP to ask the Minister of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development
What measures has the Government put in place to minimise the introduction of invasive animal species within the agricultural food chain, which is part of the risks to animal biosecurity safety and threatens the health of domestic animals, wildlife, and humans?
Reply:
The control of invasive animal species primarily resides under the Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment. The Department of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development will only get involved if such animals pose an animal health risk. The Meat Safety Act, 2000 (Act No. 40 of 2000) only applies to animals listed under schedule 1 of the Act, and therefore animals that are not listed under the schedule, including invasive animal species, are not covered under the laws administered by DALRRD, and therefore the meat thereof cannot enter the commercial food chain.
19 May 2023 - NW1334
Wilson, Ms ER to ask the Minister of Health
What (a) portion of the budget received from sugar tax is levied towards health awareness and health services and (b) diseases are prioritised with the above-mentioned allocation from the sugar tax?
Reply:
a) During the 2022/2023 financial year 100% of the total allocation was assigned to health awareness and education on common risk factors as well as access to screening and linkage to care. However only 51.7% of the budget was spent due to lack of human resources. The Department plans to put out a call for proposals to NGOs in the health promotion and non-communicable diseases areas to scale up the health promotion and disease prevention activities.
b) The chronic disease prevention and health promotion levy (sugar tax) is presently allocated toward addressing non-communicable diseases including hypertension, diabetes, cancer, obesity, and mental health.
END.
19 May 2023 - NW1500
Herron, Mr BN to ask the Minister of Human Settlements
What (a) number of hectares of land does the Housing Development Agency (HDA) own and/or control through powers of attorney and/or other legal instruments in the Republic and (b) is the provincial distribution of the land, (c) number of hectares is located within the metropolitan local governments of the specified land, (d) are the details of the land in each metro, (e) number of hectares of the land is currently being developed, (f) number of hectares of the land, has been owned and/or controlled by the HDA for more than two years without any formal development or pre-development activity taking place such as scoping exercises and pre-feasibility studies, (g) are the reasons that the HDA claims that it plans to develop land that is under its ownership and/or control within the towns and cities in the Western Cape and (h) period, on average, has the HDA owned and/or controlled land parcels that have remained undeveloped; (2) Whether her department has any additional evidence and/or information relating to land which is owned and/or controlled by the HDA, but which has not seen any progress; if not, what is the position in this regard; if so, (a) will she furnish Mr B N Herron with the details of information and/or evidence and (b) what are the further relevant details?
Reply:
(1)(a) The Housing Development Agency (HDA) owns and/or controls 3656.4497 hectares of land through the powers of attorney and/or other legal instruments in the Republic.
(1)(b) The Provincial distribution of the land is as follows:
Province |
Extent (hectares) |
Eastern Cape |
229.1141 |
Free State |
362.4021 |
Gauteng |
511.9226 |
KwaZulu Natal |
462.7404 |
Limpopo |
85.0599 |
Mpumalanga |
70.6333 |
Northern Cape |
303.3749 |
North West |
725.1572 |
Western Cape |
906.0452 |
(1)(c),(d)&(e) The details are as follows:
Metro |
Extent (hectares) (c) and(e) |
Developmental Status/Plans (d) |
Buffalo City |
0.2900 |
Planned site and services |
Cape Town |
162.4150 |
12 hectares – feasibilities studies 2 hectares – water reservoir completed (land acquired for servitude purposes) 3.7 hectares – Internal services installation 0.8 hectares – social housing project packaging 0.2 hectares – project packaging 141 hectares – development planning stages |
Ekurhuleni |
20.7300 |
Development feasibility stages |
Tshwane |
38.1075 |
Development planning |
eThekwini |
3.1561 |
Project packaging |
Johannesburg |
453.0851 |
452 hectares – development planning 0.3hectares – Social housing project packaging |
Mangaung |
259.6135 |
Development planning |
(1)(f) The number of hectares of land that has been owned and/or controlled by the HDA for more than two years without any formal development or pre-development activity taking place such as scoping exercises and pre-feasibility studies is zero.
(1)(g) The reason is that the agency must develop such land in conjunction with the respective municipalities and the province who must allocate funding and sign an implementation protocol.
(1)(h)The average period that the HDA had owned and/or controlled land parcels is approximately five (5) years. The unavailability of bulk services and capacity is a critical challenge in most municipalities.
(2) The Department does not have any additional details. All details are as provided in paragraphs (1)(c) – (e) above.
(2)(a) Not applicable.
(2)(b) Not applicable.
19 May 2023 - NW1336
Wilson, Ms ER to ask the Minister of Health
(1)(a) What total number of mortuaries in the Republic are adequately equipped to deal with load shedding to prevent bodies from decomposing and (b) what are the details of how they are equipped to deal with load shedding; (2) whether all bodies at each mortuary in the Republic are refrigerated; if not, what is the position in this regard; if so, what are the relevant details; (3) whether any of the mortuaries in the Republic experience problems with regard to space and/or refrigeration facilities; if so, in each case, what is the (a) name of the mortuary and (b)(i) province and (ii) town and/or city in which the specified mortuary is situated; (4) what (a) are the names of the mortuaries that experience shortages of (i) generators and (ii) fuel supply and (b) is the (i) province and (ii) town and/or city in which each specified mortuary is situated?
Reply:
1. (a) All mortuaries, Forensic and hospitals are adequately equipped to deal with loadshedding to prevent bodies from decomposing.
b) All Forensic mortuaries have a backup generator capacity and hospital mortuaries are linked also to the generator capacity of the hospital.
(2) Yes all bodies at both mortuaries are refrigerated.
(3) Table 1 below responds to Forensic pathology mortuaries with space and/or refrigeration challenges.
Table 1:
(i) Province |
(3)(a) Names of mortuaries that have specific issues with space and/or refrigeration facilities |
(2)(b)(ii) In which town/city |
Eastern Cape |
7 Mortuaries; Mthatha, Lusikisiki, Mount Frere, Bizana, New Brighton, Mount Road and Gelvandale potential to experience space issues related to unclaimed bodies. |
Mthatha FPS is in Mthata Lusikisiki is in Lusikisiki Mount Frere is in Mount Frere Bizana is in Bizana New Brighton is in Port Elizabeth Mount Road is in Port Elizabeth Gelvandale is in Port Elizabeth |
Free State |
None |
Not applicable |
KwaZulu-Natal |
10 Mortuaries: Port Shepstone, Harding, Estcourt, Newcastle, Madadeni, Nongoma, Vryheid, New Hanover, Richmond and Ladysmith have potential refrigerator challenges related to unclaimed bodies. Ladysmith has also space challenge |
Port Shepstone FPS is in Port Shepstone Harding FPS is in Harding New Hanover FPS is in New Hanover Vryheid FPS is in Vryheid Richmond FPS is in Richmond Ladysmith FPS is in Ladysmith Madadeni FPS is in Madadeni Nongoma FPS is in Nongoma Estcourt FPS is in Estcourt |
Gauteng |
3 Mortuaries: Roodepoort, Diepkloof and Johannesburg and have a potential space challenge due to increased intake. 4 Mortuaries: Heidelberg, Sebokeng, Springs and Pretoria have a potential refrigerator challenge due to increased intake. |
Roodepoort FPS is in Roodepoort Diepkloof FPS is in Diepkloof Johannesburg FPS is in Hillbrow. Heidelberg FPs is in Heidelberg Sebokeng FPS is in Sebokeng Springs FPS is in Springs Pretoria FPS is in Pretoria. |
Limpopo |
2 Mortuaries: Tshilidzini and Mokopane have space challenge due to unclaimed bodies. |
Tshilidzi FPS is in Thohoyandou. Mokopane FPS is in Mokopane |
Mpumalanga |
5 Mortuaries: Themba, Ermelo, Kwa Mhlanga, Lydenburg and Tintswalo have refrigerator challenges. |
Themba FPS is in Nelspruit Ermelo FPS is in Ermelo Kwa Mhlanga FPS is in Kwa Mhlanga Lydenburg FPS is in Lydenburg Tintswalo is in Acornhoek |
Northern Cape |
4 Mortuaries: De Aar, Portmansburg, Hartswater, Douglas FPS have challenges with refrigerators due to loadshedding surges. This led to Kimberley FPS reaching its maximum capacity in terms of storage space |
De Aar FPS is in De Aar Hartswater FPS is in Hartswater Douglas FPS is in Douglas Postmansburg FPS is in Postmansburg Kimberley FPS is in Kimberley |
Northwest |
2 Mortuaries: Mafikeng and Lichtenburg have space challenge due to inadequate infrastructure. |
Mafikeng FPS is in Mafikeng Lichtenburg FPS is in Lichtenburg |
Western Cape |
2 Mortuaries: Laingsburg has a space challenge. Ceres has a refrigerator challenge |
Laingsburg FPS is in Laingsburg Ceres FPS is in Ceres town |
(4) Table 2 below responds to Forensic pathology mortuaries with generators and fuel supply challenges.
(i) Province |
(4)(a)(i)(ii) names of the mortuaries that have generators, and fuel supply |
(4)(b)(ii) in which town and/or city and province is each specified mortuary located? |
Eastern Cape |
None |
Not applicable |
Free State |
Phuthaditjhaba FPS Mortuary problems with electricity supply and vandalisms, using adjacent hospitals (Phekolong and Dihlabeng) for storage |
Phuthaditjhaba FPS is in Phuthaditjhaba |
KwaZulu Natal |
Pinetown FPS needs generator that will supply power to the whole facility. Phoenix, Port Shepstone, Pietermaritzburg, Ladysmith, Dundee and Kokstad facilities experience fuel shortages sometime |
Pinetown FPS is in Pinetown Phoenix FPS is in Phoenix Port Shepstone FPS is in Port Shepstone Pietermaritzburg FPS is in Pietermaritzburg Ladysmith FPS is in Ladysmith Dundee FPS is in Dundee Kokstad FPS is in Kokstad |
Gauteng |
None |
Not applicable |
Limpopo |
None |
Not applicable |
Mpumalanga |
None |
Not applicable |
Northern Cape |
None |
Not applicable |
Northwest |
None |
Not applicable |
Western Cape |
None |
Not applicable |
END.
19 May 2023 - NW1333
Clarke, Ms M to ask the Minister of Health
(1)Whether, with reference to the Draft Regulations on the Surveillance and the Control of Notifiable Medical Conditions (NMCs) that were published in the Government Gazette on or about 15 March 2022, and the subsequent publishing of the Health Regulations Relating to the surveillance and control of NMCs on or about 4 May 2022, following his department’s repeal of Regulations 16A through 16C of the Health Regulations, his department will also withdraw the Draft Regulations in their entirety; if not, why not; if so, on what date (2) what are the reasons for his department’s decision not to repeal the listing of COVID-19 as an NMC in accordance with clause 3 of the Health Regulations, given his letter to various MECs, dated 20 June 2022, stating that the weak sub variants now circulating failed to produce a significant fifth wave; (3) what are his department’s reasons for not amending Regulation 20 of the existing regulations, which make a contravention of the regulations a crime punishable by up to 10 years’ imprisonment? ;
Reply:
(1) No. The draft Regulations published on 15 March 2022 will not be withdrawn. These draft Regulations do not deal only with Covid-19 but also with other notifiable medical conditions. The comments from the public are still being processed and will be considered for any decision/amendments to be made regarding the published draft Regulations. The draft Regulations also mean to address pandemic situations as the 2017 Regulations do not address the outbreak of pandemics.
(2) Notifiable Medical Conditions are diseases that are of public health importance because they pose significant public health risks that can result in disease outbreaks or epidemics with high case fatality rates both nationally and internationally. Covid-19 is such a condition and will therefore remain a NMC. COVID-19 is not listed specifically as it resorts amongst the respiratory diseases caused by a novel respiratory pathogen - NMC 20).
(3) The National Department of Health still believes contraventions of these Regulations has serious health implications and as such must remain an offence.
END.
19 May 2023 - NW1400
Mahlaule, Mr MG to ask the Minister of Mineral Resources and Energy
Considering that the Integrated Resource Plan (IRP) of 2019 will be reviewed in its entirety, including specifically to update electricity demand forecast up to 2050, and that the revised IRP of 2023 will be submitted to Cabinet for approval by the end of the 2023-24 financial year, (a) what are the preferred energy generation technologies identified in the revised IRP 2023 and (b) how will the preferred energy generation technologies address the short- to long-term energy challenges that the Republic faces on least-costly electricity as well as the supply and demand balance?
Reply:
a) The process of developing the IRP is mainly a technical modelling activity of the power system. Inputs assumptions into the model consider all commercially viable and proven generation technology options. The output of modelling is the proposed energy generation technologies are a function of cost, environmental impact and lead time. The output is also a function of energy availability factor of the existing generation plant including the decommissioning plan.
b) At the Policy level the output of the technical model should take into account energy security and energy sovereignty and the needs of South Africa as a developing country. The preferred plan should therefore consider the impact on the economy as a whole. It therefore must not be only about least technology cost but about the least cost to the economy.
19 May 2023 - NW1306
Chirwa-Mpungose, Ms NN to ask the Minister of Health
(1)(a) What number of public healthcare facilities will be rated green (details furnished) and (b) by what date will each public hospital reach the specified milestone; (2) whether there are any intentional plans by his department to ensure that all public healthcare facilities reach the green rating level; if not, why not; if so, what are the relevant details?
Reply:
(1) (a)-(b) Existing facilities with Green Rating Cards
Capital Projects in the pipeline for the Green Rating Cards:
(2) Aging public health facilities remains a challenge and growing concern for the Department of Health. The short-, medium- and long-term focus is thus more on restoring many of these facilities to an acceptable state of operability. This does not imply that the Department is not considering environmental sustainability. To the contrary, challenges with electricity and water supply at many of our facilities calls for a more concerted effort towards greater sustainability with less carbon footprint and such thus come into play in the design and refurbishment of these projects. The National Department of Health with the CSIR is currently busy with an investigation into how to become more green in future and will include the outcome of the study into our Infrastructure Strategy.
END.
19 May 2023 - NW1551
Essack, Mr F to ask the Minister in The Presidency for Electricity
What total amount (a) did Eskom set aside in its budget for the current financial year to buy diesel for the open cycle gas turbines and (b) of the specified budget has been spent to date?
Reply:
(a) The budget available for the Eskom Open Cycle Gas Turbines (OCGT) for the 2023/2024 Financial Year is R19,6 billion including IPP OCGT spend.
(b) The year-to-date spend for the 2023/2024 Financial year, as of 8 May 2023, is R3 billion.
End.
19 May 2023 - NW1406
Msimang, Prof CT to ask the Minister of Mineral Resources and Energy
Considering the fact that it was noted at the recent Mining Indaba held from 6 to 9 February 2023 that there cannot be an energy transition without the mining sector (details furnished), what sustainable plan and/or strategy has his department put in place to ensure that mining outputs has unhindered access to ports now and in future?
Reply:
Rail and port operations are the responsibility of Transnet which reports to the Department of Public Enterprises. The Department continues to raise the issue of port and rail constraints with relevant parties.
19 May 2023 - NW1311
Arries, Ms LH to ask the Minister of Social Development
Considering the fact that the SA Post Office has been placed under provisional liquidation, what measures of intervention have been put in place to ensure that beneficiaries receive their grant payments on time?
Reply:
Due to liquidity concerns, the contract between SAPO and SASSA for the payment of social grants was ceded to the Postbank in October 2022.
This was probably done just in time as SAPO is currently facing liquidation. The ceding of the contract, means that the liquidation – from a contractual perspective – will not impact the service agreement of clients, as a new entity (Postbank), which is solvent has taken responsibility for the contract.
However, Postbank was only given 3 months to prepare themselves for taking over the contract, and remains heavily reliant on SAPO for services – which are failing at present.
This over reliance on SAPO remains a concern for DSD and SASSA and we’ve been in constant engagement with the Postbank around alternatives to mitigate this challenge. These include:
- Postbank developing their own infrastructure, in particular, ATM infrastructure in strategic locations.
- Postbank partnering with other stakeholders to reduce their reliance on SAPO. These include larger merchants (which has been implemented to date) as well as smaller merchants such as SPAZA shops.
- Postbank introducing a cardless solution. This will limit the need for clients to interact at branches. This has already been rolled out successfully with the COVID SRD grant and has alleviated the congestion seen at Post Offices during the COVID period. This should have a similar impact when rolled out to the other grants.
Beneficiaries also have a choice to receive their social grants payment directly into own commercial bank account. More than 50% of SASSA clients utilise this option.
These options cover approximately 98.5% of our clients. The remaining 1.5% who live in far flung areas remains a challenge, and are still reliant on the cash pay point services provided by Postbank. Discussion are being held across government, led by the Presidency on a possible government wide solution to service these communities. In the meantime, the Postbank will continue running the cash paypoints that were previously run by SAPO.
19 May 2023 - NW1555
Bergman, Mr D to ask the Minister of International Relations and Cooperation
What total number of South African ambassadors were invited back to the Republic for the investment conference in Sandton between 12 to 14 April 2023, (b) what was the total cost of the (i) tickets, (ii) accommodation and (iii) subsistence allowance for her department and/or the Government in this regard and (c) which ambassadors that were budgeted and paid for did not arrive?
Reply:
a) The Department planned and budgeted for the attendance of 46 South African Heads of Mission of the investment conference in Sandton between 12 to 14 April 2023.
b) The total cost so far of the (i) tickets, (ii) accommodation and (iii) subsistence allowance for the Department is:
(i) tickets - R820 567.79
- accommodation - R285 600.00
- subsistence allowance - R25 800.00
- Ambassadors that were budgeted and paid for but who did not arrive are:
c) Ambassador PS Sizani (Berlin, Germany); Ambassador NC Mfeketo (Washington, USA); Ambassador DT Dlomo (Mexico City, Mexico)
19 May 2023 - NW1474
Mokgotho, Ms SM to ask the Minister of Human Settlements
Whether she and/or her department have put any measures in place to assist the (a) provincial department of Human Settlements and (b) Moses Kotane Local Municipality to complete the unfinished houses in Motlhabe village in the North West that have stood incomplete since 2018; if not why not; if so, what time frame have been put in place to complete the construction of the specified houses?
Reply:
(a) & (b) The National Department of Human Settements has approved the Business Plan of the North West Department of Human Settlements for the 2023-2024 financial year, which amongst others, contains a list of incomplete projects such as Motlhabe 88.
The North West Department of Human Settlements had proposed an extension of scope to complete the 38 outstanding units on the afore-said housing project in 2022, however, the developer who was constructing the houses in Motlhabe did not agree to the approved funds granted per house due to the escalating costs of building materials, partcicularly the steel.
I am informed by the North West Department of Human Settlements that it is currently re-costing the incomplete project by taking it through the Supply Chain Management bid process within three months from the date hereof. The provincial Department anticipates to complete the outstanding units before the end of March 2024.
19 May 2023 - NW1425
Mkhonto, Ms C N to ask the Minister of Employment and Labour
What total amount has his department spent on the remuneration of the Commissioner of the Compensation Fund in the past five years, whilst the specified person allegedly failed dismally to perform the duties?
Reply:
I am not sure of the allegations that the Hon. Member lays against the former Commissioner. All I am aware of is that, that Commissioner tried his best operating in conditions of not his own choosing, but committed to put the entity at a better place. Be that as it may, kindly see the below table for your question.
YEARS OF SERVICE |
TOTAL COST REMUNERATION PACKAGE |
2018 |
R 1,490 097.00 p/a |
2019 |
R 1,567 581.00 p/a |
2020 |
R 1,567 581.00 p/a |
2021 |
R 1,591 095.00 p/a |
2022 |
R 1,638 828.00 p/a |
TOTAL |
R 7,855 182.00 |
19 May 2023 - NW1332
Clarke, Ms M to ask the Minister of Health
(1)What (a) is the total amount budgeted for National Health Insurance (NHI) grants annually since 2017, (b) amount of each grant was spent, (c) items was the specified amount spent on and (d) amount was returned to the National Treasury; (2) Regarding the NHI pilot projects what (a) amount was budgeted for each project, (b) is the breakdown of each project and (c) amount has been spent annually on each project since they were launched, (3) what were the (a) outcomes of each NHI project; (4) whether the outcomes were successfully achieved; if not, why not; if so, (a) how were they evaluated and (b) what are the further relevant details?
Reply:
1. The following grants have been established:
(i) NHI Schedule 5 Direct Grant
(ii) NHI Schedule 6 Indirect Grant which consists of:
- Health Facility Revitalisation Component (In Kind Grant)
- Personal services component
- Non-personal services component
(a)-(b) The overall budget and expenditure of the NHI Grant has been as follows:
For the 2017/18 and 2018/19 financial years, it was only the NHI Indirect grant allocation and from 2019/20 it was funded from both direct and indirect grant allocations as follows:
(c) The items that the specified amount were spent on and (d) the amount returned to the National Treasury are as follows:
2. (a) NHI Pilot Projects were conducted from 2012/13 to 2015/16. The breakdown of the amounts that were budget for during this period are outlined in the Table below:
National Health Insurance Direct Grant |
|
|||||
|
2012/13 |
2013/14 |
2014/15 |
2015/16 |
2016/17 |
Total |
NHI Direct Grant |
150000,000 |
48000,000 |
72000,000 |
72000,000 |
|
342000 |
Eastern Cape |
11,500 |
4,850 |
7,000 |
7,204 |
|
30,554 |
Free State |
11,500 |
4,850 |
7,000 |
7,204 |
|
30,554 |
Gauteng |
31,500 |
4,850 |
7,000 |
7,204 |
|
50,554 |
KwaZulu-Natal |
33,000 |
9,700 |
14,000 |
14,408 |
|
71,108 |
Limpopo |
11,500 |
4,850 |
7,000 |
7,204 |
|
30,554 |
Mpumalanga |
11,500 |
4,850 |
7,000 |
7,204 |
|
30,554 |
Northern Cape |
11,500 |
4,850 |
7,000 |
7,204 |
|
30,554 |
North West |
11,500 |
4,850 |
7,000 |
7,204 |
|
30,554 |
Western Cape |
11,500 |
4,850 |
7,000 |
7,204 |
|
30,554 |
(b) The breakdown of the projects that were funded through the direct NHI Conditional Grant were as follows:
The NHI project was undertaken in 11 pilot districts across the country namely:
- OR Tambo (Eastern Cape)
- Thabo Mofutsanyana (Free State)
- City of Tshwane (Gauteng)
- Amajuba District (KwaZulu-Natal)
- Umzinyathi (KwaZulu-Natal)
- uMgungundlovu (KwaZulu-Natal)
- Vhembe (Limpopo)
- Gert Sibande (Mpumalanga)
- Dr Kenneth Kaunda (North West)
- Pixley ka Seme (Northern Cape)
- Eden (Western Cape)
The following interventions were undertaken in the aforesaid pilot districts:
- Ward-based Primary Healthcare Outreach Teams (WBPHCOTs), which were responsible for the provision of promotive and preventative healthcare to households;
- the Integrated School Health Programme (ISHP), which aimed to provide a range of health promotion and preventive services to school-going children at their places of learning;
- General Practitioner (GP) contracting, which aimed to increase the number of GPs at PHC facilities to improve the quality and acceptability of care;
- the Ideal Clinic Realisation and Maintenance (ICRM) model, which aimed to increase the quality of services through the establishment of minimum standards;
- District Clinical Specialist Teams (DCSTs), which were responsible for supporting clinical governance and undertaking clinical work, research and training;
- The Centralised Chronic Medicine Dispensing and Distribution (CCMDD) system, which aimed to improve the distribution of medicines to patients through the provision of chronic medication at designated pick-up points (PUPs) closer to the communities in the pilot districts;
- The Health Patient Registration System (HPRS), which has the ultimate goal of a fully electronic patient record-keeping system but commenced with the capturing of patient data and the generation of electronic files;
- The Stock Visibility System (SVS), which aimed to improve the oversight of stock through an electronic stock monitoring system, thereby reducing stockouts by allowing for appropriate and timely ordering;
- Infrastructure projects, which were implemented to improve health infrastructure and thereby ensure increased access and quality of care;
- Workload Indicator for Staffing Need (WISN), which are a World Health Organization (WHO) planning tool implemented to help facility managers make more efficient staffing decisions.
(3) (a) Some of the core outcomes of the project are outlined below per district:
Amajuba (KwaZulu-Natal): This district recorded a mixed set of results when it comes to key indicators that were being tracked as part of the NHI interventions – antenatal first visit before 20 weeks and HIV positive on IPT. There was a noticeable improvement in 2015, then followed by a decrease in both indictors over 2016 and 2017.
uMzinyathi (KwaZulu-Natal): There was a marked improvement in the immunization rate for children under the age of one, with a further indication that directed efforts needed to be implemented to prioritize mother and child health interventions;
uMgungundlovu (KwaZulu-Natal): The district has recorded an improvement in the immunization rate, specifically for the uptake of the measles second dose. However, indicators also pointed to the need to improve the roll-out and capacity of the Ward-Based Outreach Teams.
OR Tambo (Eastern Cape): As a result of various interventions, the district recorded a year-on-year improvement in cervical cancer screening for women over 30. This improvement also showed a marked increase in the ranking of the district as compared to other pilot and non-pilot districts. The same can be reported Diarrhea with dehydration under five.
Gert Sibande (Mpumalanga): This district recorded the highest rate of improvement in immunization uptake for those under five for all the pilot districts. This was specifically for the 2016 to 2017 period. The main challenge they experienced was around having well-capacitated Ward-Based Outreach Teams, and the ability to recruit and retain adequately skilled team members.
Vhembe (Limpopo): The district recorded an improvement in the reported number of cases with diarrhea and dehydration under five. Vhembe showed a sharp decrease in performance for this indicator. The qualitative information revealed a lack of functional DCSTs, with speculation that they need to be dismantled and a new solution found. This is potentially problematic because, with poor immunization coverage, there is a higher risk for poor child health. The DCSTs will then be critical to ensuring that child mortality does not increase.
Dr Kenneth Kaunda (North West): The district also recorded a year-on-year improvement in cervical cancer screening for women over 30. This improvement also showed a marked increase in the ranking of the district as compared to other pilot and non-pilot districts. It ranked second only to OR Tambo District.
Eden (Western Cape): A key achievement for the district was that it consistently reported the lowest levels of drug stock-outs amongst all the pilot districts.
Thabo Mofutsanyana (Free State): The district recorded a significant improvement in the number of diarrheal cases with dehydration over the period 2013 to 2017. They also achieved significant improvements in the number of school learners screened for eyesight, hearing and related conditions.
Pixley ka Seme (Northern Cape): The district recorded significant improvements and was consistently the lowest performer among the NHI pilot districts for the HIV positive with IPT and the BCG dose coverage indicators respectively.
City of Tshwane (Gauteng): This district was amongst the lowest performers of the districts included in the NHI project for the indicator on Antenatal visit before 20 weeks. However, it still recorded significant improvements in the indicator on diarrheal cases with dehydration over the period 2013 to 2017.
More generally, it must be noted that majority of the NHI districts recorded significant achievements in the establishment and roll-out of the Ward-Based Primary Health Care Outreach Teams (WBPHCOTs). The WBPHCOT intervention is currently underpinned by the Policy Framework and Strategy for Ward-based Primary Healthcare Outreach Teams 2018/2019 – 2023/2024 and aims to ensure the successful implementation of the teams and the overall success of NHI implementation in South Africa. As far back as September 2017, a reported 3,519 WBPHCOTs were covering 12 816 152 households. At the end of 2017/2018 financial year, there were a total of 3,323 WBPHCOTs providing basic health services to children and adults across the country, not just in the NHI districts.
(4) (a)-(b) The evaluation of the various interventions implemented as part of NHI is based on a number of interrelated processes, including regular monitoring and evaluation of progress through the Annual Performance Plans at the National and Provincial Departments of Health. It also included undertaking a rigorous evaluation exercises and the prepartion of technical reports detailing the various interventions implemented over time and the impact that these selected interventions have had on key indicators such as antenatal visits, incidence of diarrhea cases as well as establsihment of key teams such as PHC outreach teams. The Evaluation Report is attached as Annexure 1. The implementation of various interventions resulted in a number of interellated achievements, some of which include:
1. The successful roll-out of the Ward-Based Primary Health Care Outreach Teams (WBPHCOTs) intervention aimed at ensuring the successful implementation of the PHC teams and the overall success of NHI implementation in South Africa. As far back as September 2017, a reported 3,519 WBPHCOTs were covering 12 816 152 households. At the end of 2017/2018 financial year, there were a total of 3,323 WBPHCOTs providing basic health services to children and adults across the country, not just in the NHI districts.
2. The rollout of the Integrated School Health Programme (ISHP). The aim of the ISHP intervention is to provide a range of health promotion and preventive services to school-going children with a particular focus on the screening of health-related barriers to learning such as vision, hearing, cognitive and related developmental impairments (National Department of Health, 2017). The programme is underpinned by the Integrated School Health Policy, which outlines the complementary roles of each government department responsible for addressing the needs of learners with the aim of ensuring that strong school health services operate according to clear and uniform standards across the country (National Department of Health, 2013). This intervention was implemented by the NDoH in collaboration with the DBE and holds important lessons with regard to inter-departmental collaboration and coordination during implementation. National stakeholders expressed the belief that, overall, there was good collaboration between the national departments in implementing ISHP.
3. Contracting of Health Practitioners (“GP Contracting”): Recognising that Human Resources for Health (HRH) are a key component of a well-functioning health system, and that the inequitable distribution of human resources within the dual health system in South Africa has been an ongoing challenge. Historically, GPs have not been part of the staffing composition at public PHC facilities. Furthermore, the lack of GPs in the public sector has impacted the system in a number of ways. Notably, this has impacted patients’ perceptions of the quality of care received at PHC facilities. This intervention was implemented to improve quality of care and access to needed health care services at the local facility level, especially in targeted clinics through the introduction of different contracting mechanisms with the aim of improving access and quality services to vulnerable communities.
The contracting of GPs was introduced in 2012 as part of NHI Phase 1 implementation, and at the end of 2017/2018, 330 GPs had been contracted. GP contracting was identified by stakeholders as one of the most important interventions to ensure health system strengthening (HSS). The intended aims and objectives of contracting GPs are evidently clear and well understood among stakeholders. The key objectives of GP contracting were to reduce the over-utilisation of hospitals and to improve quality of care (and perceptions thereof) of public healthcare facilities.
4. Ideal Clinic Realisation and Maintenace (ICRM): ICRM was introduced in response to existing insufficiencies in the quality of PHC services and to lay the foundation for NHI implementation. This intervention was introduced in South African facilities in July 2013 with the aim of improving quality of care after a baseline audit commissioned by the NDoH in 2011 discovered that only one facility in the country met the required standards of a health facility. An ideal clinic is defined as a clinic with good infrastructure, adequate staff, adequate medicine and supplies, good administrative processes and sufficient adequate bulk supplies. It uses appropriate clinical policies, protocols and guidelines, and it harnesses partner and stakeholder support to ensure the provision of quality health services at PHC level to communities. There are 10 components of the ICRM programme, all of which contain subcomponents that specify the initiatives under each component.
The evaluation findings suggest that ICRM is an intervention that achieved considerable scale and reach during NHI Phase 1. At the end of 2017/2018, 3 434 facilities had been assessed, and of these, 1 507 had attained ideal clinic status. Of the facility managers surveyed, 51 of 60 (86%) reported that ICRM was being implemented in their facility.
Moreover, the intervention is commonly understood to have significantly contributed to HSS over the previous five years of implementation as a result of its initial large scale-up across the country.
5. Establishment of District Clinical Specialist Teams (DCSTs): The DCSTs were envisioned to comprise highly specialised HCPs, including an obstetrician and gynaecologist, a paediatrician, a family physician, an anaesthetist, a midwife and a professional nurse, and it was expected that they would spend 70% of their time supporting clinical governance, 20% on clinical work and 10% on research and training. Clinical governance encompasses the maintenance and improvement of standards for patient care at facilities. The various activities of clinical governance have been implemented to different extents in PHC facilities. The four major components of clinical governance are role identification, improving care, improving patients’ experiences and identifying good practice. The DCSTs are responsible for driving these components of clinical governance at district level and are an extension of the district management team and report directly to the district manager as well as the provincial DCST coordinator.
6. Centralised Chronic Medication Dispensing and Distribution (CCMDD): This is a unique model of medicine dispensing and distribution that has been adopted in South, which is led and implemented by the NDoH. CCMDD was introduced in 2012 to improve the successful distribution of medication to patients. This intervention is made up of two components: CCMDD and Pick-Up Points (PUPs); These two components were envisioned (a) to improve the quality of care of patients as chronic patients will be accessing their medication from a private service provider rather than going into facilities, thus decreasing congestion at facilities, making more staff time available and improving the staff’s ability to provide quality services and (b) to increase access for patients and decrease patient waiting times as there will be no need for patients to go to pick up their medication at congested facilities. During the implementation of NHI Phase 1, CCMDD was heavily focused on the provision of antiretrovirals, fixed-dose combinations in particular, to stable HIV patients receiving antiretroviral treatment (ART).
The evaluation findings suggest that CCMDD is overwhelmingly believed to be the NDoH’s most successful intervention implemented during NHI Phase 1. This has been identified as a flagship programme, and for this reason, there are numerous valuable lessons to be learned from its implementation. These lessons will only apply to the continuation of the CCMDD programme but can be useful for the continued implementation of other interventions.
Specifically, lessons around the issues of contracting private service providers, which has been communicated by the NDoH to be a key component of NHI Phase 2. At the end of 2017/2018, there were 2 182 422 patients enrolled in the CCMDD programme who were collecting their medicines from over 855 PUPs across the country (National Department of Health, 2018). On balance, it is evident that CCMDD has indeed achieved its immediate aims of decongesting facilities, which helps improve the availability of HCPs’ time and, as a result, improve health outcomes. The success is largely reflected in the successful scale-up of the programme beyond the pilot districts and beyond the expectations of NHI Phase 1 implementation plans.
7. e-Health interventions: e-Health interventions are those that employ digital solutions to assist health workers and PHC facilities to operate more efficiently, with the ultimate aim of contributing to improved access to and improved quality healthcare.
a) As part of the preparatory work for the phased implementation of NHI, the Department has successfully rolled-out the Health Patient Registration System (HPRS). The HPRS serves as an online registry of all patients using healthcare services in South Africa that can be accessed at any facility to provide health workers with patients’ demographic information and their most up-to-date health records. Patients are registered with a unique identification number (for example, their national identity number or passport number) and assigned to a host facility, which is the facility that they attend most frequently. The HPRS is thus the entry point for patients into the formal health system. The HPRS is expected to lead to more efficient patient registration and record-keeping, which is in turn expected to contribute to better decision-making, to facilitate easier access to patient data and to lead to a better referral system. Overall, the implementation of the HPRS during NHI Phase 1 can be understood to have presented both successes and challenges. At the end of 2017/2018, 2968 PHC facilities were using the HPRS, and there were 20 million people registered on the system (National Department of Health, 2018). Moreover, IT hardware for an additional 918 PHC facilities in 13 health districts was purchased, totalling 4862 computers in total (National Department of Health, 2018). However, challenges have hindered the intervention’s ability to contribute to improved decision-making and referrals thus far. It should be noted, however, that the first stage of implementation was focused largely on setting up user profiles and is not expected to contribute greatly to decision-making as yet. As the implementation of NHI continues and the HPRS becomes more widely used, it will need to be further populated with routine and referral information to improve patient tracking and, in turn, contribute to improved decision-making.
b) Another intervention in the e-Health space is MomConnect. MomConnect is an SMS-based initiative that “aims to support maternal health through the use of cell phone-based technologies integrated into maternal and child health services” (National Department of Health, 2018). The purpose of MomConnect is ultimately to prevent maternal and child deaths through targeted health promotion messages to pregnant women to improve their health and that of their infants (National Department of Health, 2018). At the end of 2017/2018, the number of pregnant women and mothers registered on MomConnect was 1 888 918, which had doubled from the previous financial year. Moreover, a total of 818 688 pregnant women and mothers were receiving health-promotion messages at the end of 2017/2018.
c) There is also the Stock Visibility System (SVS) which is an application designed to address the challenge of drug and related stock-outs and ensure that all South Africans have access to the medicines they need. It is a mobile application used in PHC clinics to monitor and report on stock availability levels for essential medicines like anti-retrovirals, TB medication and vaccines. The purpose of the SVS is to enable more informed decision-making and proactive stock management at PHC facility level. Using the SVS application, clinic staff are able to capture information on the availability of essential medicines at PHC facilities, which is then uploaded to a central online repository. The data from this repository is consolidated in real time to improve oversight of stock availability and, consequently, improve the accuracy and efficiency of stock distribution based on demand.
The SVS is able to detect reported stock-outs at clinic level and automatically send early warning alerts to managers at each point in the supply chain when stock-outs are predicted, from clinic through to national level. In a similar vein, the system also alerts managers to over-stocking, which is necessary to avoid situations where stock is lost due to expiry. These types of alerts thus enable managers to more proactively manage stock levels and avoid stock-outs as well as stock losses. At the end of 2017/2018, the SVS was being implemented in 3167 clinics and CHCs, which equated to 92% coverage (National Department of Health, 2018). The findings of the evaluation indicate that, where it has been implemented as planned, the implementation of the SVS has largely been a success, leading to a reduction in stock-outs and pressure at facilities where it was being implemented.
Over and above all these targeted interventions, the National and Provincial Departments of Health continue to implement a number of interventions directed at maintaining existing infrastructure (clinics, hospitals, CHCs, etc.); refurbishments as well as the commissioning of new ones to address quality and related challenges. Poor infrastructure limits the extent of health services that can be provided to communities. Therefore, since the 2013/14 financial year, more than R1.9 billion has been spent on infrastructure projects in the NHI pilot districts.
END.
19 May 2023 - NW1305
Chirwa-Mpungose, Ms NN to ask the Minister of Health
What (a) action has he taken in relation to the recommendations by the Ombudsman at the Rahima Moosa Hospital that the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) should be released and a new CEO be placed at the specified hospital, (b) number of recommendations pertaining to the Rahima Moosa Hospital from the Ombudsman (i) has his department implemented and (ii) are still outstanding and (c) period was his department given by the Ombudsman to respond to the recommendations and concerns raised over the hospital?
Reply:
a) The Chief Executive Officer of Rahima Moosa hospital Dr Mkabayi has been transferred to the Provincial Department of Health for the duration of her contract. Dr Mkabayi is receiving professional support and training required and she is adapting very well in the new environment and her performance is good. There are no challenges experienced thus far as she has knowledge, skills and abilities required to execute her responsibilities at this office. She has also subjected herself to the Health Professions Council of South Africa(HPCSA) processes and the outcome of which is now the mandate of the HPCSA.
In a letter received on 15 May 2023 the Office of the Premier has advised that they have requested the SIU to conduct the respective investigations relating to some of the matters raised by the Ombuds.
The above encompass nine (9) of the Ombud’s recommendations specific to Dr Mkabayi.
b) (i)-(ii) Table 1 below represents a list of the other recommendations from the Ombudsman report and the status to date.
Table 1: (i) Ombudsman recommendation and status to date
RECOMMENDATION |
STATUS |
ACHIEVED |
|
Human Resources Related |
|||
1 |
Appointment of the new CEO for RMMCH is identified and appointed within 3 Months |
In progress |
|
2 |
The advertisement for the CEO position should be in line with standardised requirements for CEOs of regional and tertiary level hospitals to ensure any potential candidates meet all relevant criteria and are 'fit for purpose' |
Completed |
Post was advertised in the Sunday Times Newspaper of 23 April 2023 with a closing date of 5 May 2023. Post was also placed on the GPG Jobs Portal |
3 |
GDOH to consider using recommended CEO advert as outlined in the Ombuds report (pg 16 & 17) |
Completed |
Post was advertised in the Sunday Times Newspaper of 23 April 2023 with a closing date of 5 May 2023. The advert for the CEO is in line with the recommended KPAs. |
4 |
Only candidates with relevant and proven expertise and experience should be shortlisted with detailed records indicating the reasons for shortlisting or rejecting each candidate |
Not yet started |
Shortlisting will be conducted on 30 May 2023 |
5 |
An experienced CEO knowledgeable in management of regional level hospitals should be appointed. It would be critical that the new CEO is viewed as a leader who would have the ability to unite the health workforce with RMMCH |
Not yet started |
Advert closed on 5 May 2023 Shortlisting will be conducted on 30 May 2023 |
6 |
To ensure success, the GDOH should provide ongoing regular support to the new CEO, which should be documented on a monthly basis |
Ongoing |
|
7 |
The Gauteng HoD for Health and DDG: Corporate Services must urgently review the Provincial HR processes for the appointment of CEOs and other senior staff within six (6) months. The review should evaluate provincial HR processes with regards to the advertised requirements and competencies required for the position, pre-employment reference checks and vetting for senior positions, especially those of hospital CEOs |
In progress |
|
8 |
During the period of the investigation, it was noted that at least 2 Tertiary Hospital CEOs in Gauteng were suspended for maladministration and misappropriation of Funds (Tembisa & Kalafong Hospitals) raising questions about the calibre of individuals hired for these positions as well as HR processes followed |
N/A |
|
9 |
The Gauteng MEC of Health must urgently appoint an independent forensic and audit firm within two (2) months to conduct a competency, ‘fit for purpose’ assessment of the leadership and management staff at RMMCH |
In progress |
In a letter received on 15 May 2023 the Office of the Premier has advised that they have requested the SIU to conduct the respective investigations |
10 |
The Gauteng MEC of Health must urgently appoint an independent forensic and audit firm within two (2) months to assess the need to upskill all RMMCH managers / EXCO members to ensure they are able to perform their functions in line with the expectations of RMMCH service delivery. |
In progress |
In a letter received on 15 May 2023 the Office of the Premier has advised that they have requested the SIU to conduct the respective investigations |
11. |
The GDoH should prioritise the review of the RMMCH staff establishment and appoint staff in line with their skill sets in all departments to ensure compliance with Regulation 19 (2) (a) of the Norms and Standards Regulations. |
In progress |
This process forms part of the GDoH organizational structure review |
12 |
A review of the utilisation of nurses from Nursing Agencies is also recommended to reduce the strain on the goods and services budget. |
In progress |
R 48 million has been allocated to permanently appoint nurses to complement services that are normally provided for by nursing agencies. Nurses appointed under COVID-19 grant contracts have currently been prioritised. |
13 |
A report detailing progress on recommendations regarding the review of the RMMCH staff establishment should be sent to the Ombud within six (6) months. |
In progress |
The process of reviewing the organogram is at an advanced stage. The HR capacity challenges have been addressed in the new organogram; Over 800 new permanent posts will be created and filled in the current financial year. Rahima Moosa has been allocated 58 posts |
14 |
The staff allocated to the MoUs should include Advanced Midwives to ensure support |
Done |
Hillbrow CHC = 5 advanced midwives (one per shift and the 5th one is the manager responsible for maternity) Discoverers CHC also has 5 advanced midwives. (two are managers) |
15 |
The GDoH is to fast-track the establishment of a fully functional adult ICU at RMMCH within six (6) months. The ICU will ensure that patients are treated in a manner consistent with the nature and severity of their health condition as provided for in Regulation 5 (1) of the Norms and Standards Regulations and allow scheduled surgical procedures within the theatres to continue in an uninterrupted manner |
In progress |
Discussion initiated. Propose a phased approach - convert an existing H/C bed to an ICU bed with the added nursing and medical resources required |
16 |
The Gauteng Department of Health and RMMCH should institute a disciplinary inquiry within one (1) month following prevailing policy and compatible with the Labour Relations Act 66 of 1995 against the following personnel: 4.1.1. Sr T Goduka for using an unauthorized self-concocted solution in the maternity operating theatres during August and September 2022 by doing so she put the lives of patients at risk and the reputation of GDoH at stake. Her actions led to several adverse events (post-operative wound sepsis) which necessitated eleven 'relook' surgeries in theatre in August and September 2022; Done RMMCH initiated a disciplinary process for Sr T Goduka. |
An independent advisory team completed and submitted recommendations to the Acting CEO. Progressive discipline was undertaken Disciplinary action taken and matter concluded - Official has been issued with a written warning |
|
Infrastructure related recommendations |
|||
14 |
The Premier should ensure that RMMCH is one of the first hospitals to be refurbished, within six (6) months |
In progress |
|
15 |
Consideration should be given based on the collapsing sewage system, leaking steam pipes, dilapidated buildings and unkept surrounding areas within the hospital perimeter |
In progress |
|
16. |
The GDoH should provide additional maternity capacity within the district, including but not limited to the construction / refurbishment / repurposing of buildings suitable for a Maternity Obstetric Unit (MOU) to cater for the delivery of low-risk maternity cases within the region, within twelve (12) months. This will further alleviate the overcrowding experienced at RMMCH. |
In progress |
Management has planned the following to increase the maternity beds in the JHB District: 1. Operationalization of Florida Clinic and convert into a CHC by 2023/24. 2. Conversion of Westbury Clinic into a CHC by 2024/25. The above plans however require availability of posts |
A suitable HR Plan that meets the needs of the health establishment in line with Regulation 19(1) and (2) (a) of the Norms and Standards Regulations must eb developed and implemented within one (1) month |
In progress |
Draft HR Plan completed by RMMCH. Central Office to take over this task - it is linked to the finalisation of other processes such as the Dept organogram, and the Tertiary Services status of the hospital. |
|
The HR department should be upskilled and capacitated to carry out the mandate of RMMCH within three (3) months |
In progress |
Audit completed. Initial training by GCRA commenced 8 May. GCRA committed to further analysis of HR skills. |
|
Finance and Audit Related |
|||
GDoH should prioritise and fast-track the gazetting of RMMCH as a Tertiary hospital which would ensure that RMMCH receives a tertiary grant, within eight (8) months. |
In progress |
|
|
In the interim, within two (2) months) GDoH should apply short-term interventions including the application of PFMA section 16A to ensure allocation of additional funds for RMMCH. |
|||
The Gauteng MEC of Health must urgently appoint an independent forensic and audit firm within two (2) months to review corporate governance at the hospital in line with appropriate and applicable King IV corporate governance principles to promote and improve a culture of good corporate governance |
In progress |
|
|
In the interim, within one (1) month, a larger “Smart Fridge” should be procured to ensure the storage of adequate quantities of emergency blood at RMMCH. |
Completed |
|
|
2017 Rahima Moosa Maternal Child Hospital Coovadia report related |
|||
The MEC and HoD for Health should revisit the 2017 RMMCH report with a view to implementing the recommendations as a matter of urgency. A comprehensive implementation plan is to be submitted to the Ombud within six (6) months including detailed realistic strategies, time frames, and names, designations and contact details of persons responsible for implementation. |
In progress |
|
|
Hospital Administration , Management and Governance related specific to RMMCH |
|||
17 |
The HoD’s office should be sufficiently strengthened to conduct comprehensive oversight of hospitals in Gauteng. A detailed implementation plan is to be shared with the Ombud within one (1) month. |
In progress |
It is proposed that the HOD establish a multidisciplinary Head of Department Advisory Committee (HODAC) tasked with oversight of hospitals |
18 |
GDoH is to prioritise the reclassification of Discoverers CHC to a district hospital within six (6) months, to alleviate the patient load within the region. It will also ensure compliance with Regulations 5(1) and 8(1) of the Norms and Standards Regulations |
In progress |
The National Department of Health in collaboration with the Gauteng Department have started the review The process of classification of health facilities and all hospitals is in progress. |
19 |
The GDoH should ensure that RMMCH, a specialist hospital, has Laboratory Services and Blood Bank |
In progress |
NHLS lab open on site during the day. After hours proposal to improve bloods turnaround time to be discussed. Blood bank obtained 2nd smart fridge for afterhours blood availability. |
The Gauteng MEC of Health is to diligently monitor that the appointed Hospital Board is adequately trained and able to discharge their functions to ensure compliance with Regulation 18 of the Norms and Standards Regulations. 12.2 This should be implemented with immediate effect. |
Done |
Board has been appointed and given training on their functions and responsibilities. |
|
The Acting CEO of RMMCH must ensure that the Hospital has a system in place to manage healthcare personnel in line with relevant legislation, policies and guidelines within one (1) month |
Carried out on an ongoing basis |
Policy updating and distribution to staff is ongoing. Staff also now requesting policy changes which are being considered. Registers in place and checked by HR personnel for compliance Ongoing rollout of policies - PMDS, Records, Absenteeism, Incapacity and Leave Management, R&S done. |
|
The Acting CEO of RMMCH should identify a suitable area to create a Discharge Lounge, within one (1) month. This will cater for discharged patients who are waiting to return to their homes. |
Completed |
Completed |
|
The Discharge Lounge should be allocated dedicated staff to ensure that patients are monitored until they leave the hospital premises |
Completed |
Completed |
|
The Acting of RMMCH and HoD must within one (1) month submit to the Ombud a security plan to protect users, health care personnel, and hospital property from security threats and risks and ensure that security staff is capacitated to deal with security incidents, threats and risks |
In progress |
Security cameras all upgraded and functional. SLA between facility and security company has been reviewed and given to company, which has failed to respond. The on-site security manager has implemented SLA and is monitoring compliance. Weekly reports will be sent to Central Office Security unit on their performance. Security plan has been finalised |
|
A clear plan is to be developed within one (1) month regarding the safety of healthcare staff over 24 hours, both within the hospital premises as well as within the immediate areas of the hospital periphery to ensure RMMCH complies with Regulation 17 (1) and (2) of the Norms and Standards Regulations |
In progress |
Security cameras all upgraded and functional. SLA between facility and security company has been reviewed and given to company, which has failed to respond. The on-site security manager has implemented SLA and is monitoring compliance. Weekly reports will be sent to Central Office Security unit on their performance. Security plan has been finalised |
(c ) The recommendations from the Ombudsman range from immediate to twelve(12) months.
END.
19 May 2023 - NW1415
Lorimer, Mr JR to ask the Minister of Mineral Resources and Energy
By what date does he envisage that he will table amending legislation in the National Assembly, as recommended by the Report of the Portfolio Committees on Mineral Resources and Energy, Home Affairs and Police on the Joint Oversight Visit on Illegal Mining to Five South African Provinces, dated 25 November 2022?
Reply:
Based on the Department’s assessment and the Report of the Portfolio Committees on Mineral Resources and Energy, Home Affairs and Police on the Joint Oversight Visit on Illegal Mining to Five South African Provinces, dated 25 November 2022, the department in consultation with interested and affected parties has begun work to identify gaps on the MPRDA and Precious Metals Act that may need to be amended. The intention is to submit these Bills for tabling in Cabinet during 2024/25 financial year. Work to amend the Diamond Act No. 56 of 1986 is underway and public consultation is planned for Quarter 2 this financial year.
19 May 2023 - NW1303
Tafeni, Ms N to ask the Minister of Health
(a) What number of hospitals have reported cable theft to date, (b) what is the name of each hospital that reported theft of cables, (c) what action has he taken to respond to the security concern raised over cable theft and its possible consequences, (d) by what date will he intervene on the matter and (e) what preventative measures will be put in place to avoid cable theft from happening in future?
Reply:
a) The National Department of Health is still waiting for the data from other provincial health departments. However, the Department has been informed by the Gauteng Department of Health about the stolen cables at Charlotte Maxeke, Steve Biko and Chris Hani Baragwanath Academic Hospitals. To date, only 9 Hospitals were reported for cable theft in the Free State Province.
b) Hospitals that have been reported for cable theft are listed below:
- Bongani hospital (Welkom)
- Boitumelo hospital (Kroonstad)
- Thebe hospital (Harrismith)
- Mohumadi Manapo hospital (Qwa Qwa)
- Elizabeth Ross hospital (Qwa Qwa)
- National hospital (Bloemfontein)
- Universitas hospital (Bloemfontein)
- JS Maroka hospital (Thaba Nchu)
- Mohau hospital (Hoopstad)
c) All the cable theft incidents were reported to the nearest police stations and case numbers were issued accordingly. Mast lights have been installed at various facilities; Manned security was instructed to patrol areas that were identified as high-risk areas for cable theft.
d) All the affected facilities were attended to by replacing the stolen cables during 2022/23 financial year.
e) The Free State Department of Health is planning to employ more security personnel to facilities that are high risk areas. Key interventions also include installations of Clearview fencing and CCTV at health facilities.
END.
19 May 2023 - NW1529
Cachalia, Mr G K to ask the Minister of Public Enterprises
(a) What number of litres of diesel did Eskom use for the purposes of power generation in the (i) 2021-22 and (ii) 2022-23 financial years and (b) what was the total cost of the diesel used in each of the specified financial years?
Reply:
According to Information Received from Eskom:
(a)(i)
In the 2021/22 financial year, 571 295 617 litres of diesel were used.
(a)(ii)
In the 2022/23 financial year, 937 508 149 litres of diesel were used.
(b) The total cost of diesel consumption in FY21/22 was R6,407 million and R21,356 million in FY22/23.
Note that the R6,407 million included the rebate of R2,297 million, which was retrospectively written off for the FY21/22 in the FY22/23. Excluding the rebate, the total cost of diesel consumption was R8,704 million.
Remarks: Approved / Not Approved
Jacky Molisane PJ Gordhan, MP
Acting Director-General Minister
Date: Date:
19 May 2023 - NW1307
Chirwa-Mpungose, Ms NN to ask the Minister of Health
(a) How long has the stock shortage of surgical metal being experienced at the Livingstone Hospital in Gqeberha resulted in patients being turned away without assistance when seeking orthopaedic intervention, (b) what other hospitals are affected by the same issue and (c) what measures of intervention (i) will he take to resolve the crisis and (ii) are in place to prevent the shortage of such surgical metal?
Reply:
(a) According to the Eastern Cape province this issue was experienced in August 2021 and is attributable to a tender process that made it impossible to have the necessary range of products to choose from.
The key challenge with implants at Livingstone hospital and the whole EC province is the absence of a comprehensive transversal contract and gross budget limitations within the province. The hospital is the only referral hospital for implants in the Western area of the Eastern Cape resulting in massive backlogs.
(b) We are not aware nor informed of any other hospitals experiencing this issue;
(c) (i) To address the budgetary limits, there is a plan to source additional funding that can only be sourced from the Eastern Cape Provincial Treasury. Where possible, the National Department of Health may assist the province, however, it also depends on the availability of additional funding from the National Treasury.
To address the orthopaedic surgery problem that have an impact on Livingstone hospital the following interventions have been proposed to the Eastern Cape Province:
- Strengthening the General Surgical service provision to Uitenhage Provincial Hospital with the allocation of a designated theatre with needed staff support
- Increase Level 1 and 2 beds through the reclassification of PE Provincial Hospital (hybrid) to provide additional theatre access for general surgery.
- Fully establish the surgical disciplines at Dora Nginza Hospital.
- Establish the out-reach and in-reach (Cataract Surgery and General Surgery).These are both underway for Humansdorp and Settlers Hospitals.
- The above-mentioned measures will help address the backlog issues, theatre inefficiencies, remove level 1 cases from regional and tertiary hospitals.
(ii) To deal with the issue of the provision of adequate suppliers, there is also a plan to develop a transversal contract at National level that will also enhance services across other provinces facing similar challenges.
There has also been a discussion that the Eastern Cape should participate in the Western Cape contract to fast track the provision of surgical implants as an immediate intervention.
END.
19 May 2023 - NW1385
Winkler, Ms HS to ask the Minister of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development
Whether Schedule 1 of the Meat Safety Act, Act 40 of 2000, which states that the specified Act also applies to all other species of animals not mentioned above, including birds, fish and reptiles that may be slaughtered as food for human and animal consumption, also includes lions and leopards; if not, why not; if so, what has she found to be the reasons of listing animals in Schedule 1, but then stating that in fact the meat safety Act applies to all species of animals?
Reply:
Yes, the schedule includes animals that may be listed as threatened species in accordance with conservation provisions, and therefore, their slaughter for human and animal consumption must be in line with the relevant conservation provisions and this covers lions and leopards. See attached draft amendment and the clarificatory notice.
The Schedule that Honourable Winkler is referring to was a draft amendment to the current Schedule 1, which was gazetted for public consultation. The process was not concluded due to a need to conduct further consultations and possible investigations before amending the Schedule.
19 May 2023 - NW1467
Madokwe, Ms P to ask the Minister of Mineral Resources and Energy
Considering that petroleum remains in the custody of the state and noting the recent decision by his department to grant a certain energy company (name furnished) environmental authorisation to conduct exploratory drilling between Cape Town and Cape Agulhas, what (a) financial benefits does he envisage for the state and its citizens should the efforts by the specified company prove fruitful and (b) are the reasons that the state is not investing in building its own capacity to explore, produce and sell gas and oil products found on its shores?
Reply:
The joint-venture partnership which has been granted environmental authorisation for exploration drilling in the west coast block comprises TotalEnergies, Shell and PetroSA. TotalEnergies is the operator for the joint-venture, hence the environmental authorisation is directed to TotalEnergies but the license is for the joint-venture which includes the state owned company, PetroSA.
a) It is premature to provide estimate of the financial benefits that would accrue to the state and our people if the exploration was to be successful as this would depend on the actual size of the discovery. We know though that licensees must pay royalties to the fiscus for the oil and gas they extract or produce. The revenue to the fiscus will benefit all our people. If the efforts are fruitful, the project will create permanent employment for some of our people.
b) The state, through PetroSA, has capacity for exploration and production of oil and gas as demonstrated by PetroSA’s 20 years track record in producing oil and gas in the south coast which was used as feedstock to the gas-to-liquids (GTL) refinery in Mossel Bay. PetroSA continues to build its capacity to play a more meaningful role in the upstream oil and gas sector as envisaged in Upstream Petroleum Resources Development Bill, 2021. (The UPRD Bill sets the mandatory state participation at 20% carried interest). PetroSA’s participation in the west coast block recently licensed for exploration is an example of how they continue to build their capacity.
19 May 2023 - NW1549
Essack, Mr F to ask the Minister in The Presidency for Electricity
Whether, with regard to media reports that an emergency Cabinet meeting convened by the President, Mr M C Ramaphosa, to consider the Minister’s plan to slow the decommissioning of old coal power stations deliberated on the possible use of privatepublic partnerships to fund investments in the coal power stations, there are any private investors who have come forward to partner with the Government to invest in the old coal power stations; if not, what is the position in this regard; if so, what are the further relevant details?
Reply:
Members of the Cabinet are accountable collectively and individually to Parliament for the exercise of their powers and the performance of their functions. Any unauthorized or premature disclosure of Cabinet meetings or information undermines the collective responsibility of the Cabinet.
End.
19 May 2023 - NW1418
Cardo, Dr MJ to ask the Minister of Employment and Labour
With reference to the March 2023 South Africa Economic Outlook published by PwC South Africa which indicated a decrease in job creation for the Republic in 2023, what are the details of the Government’s strategies to address the challenges posed by load shedding and its impact on employment growth, particularly in sectors such as agriculture and private households that have experienced declines?
Reply:
Honourable Dr Cardo, we admit at the onset and remain worried about the impact of load shedding on our labour markets, and by extension the whole economy including the sectors you have mentioned,
That been the case I want to bring to your attention that despite this challenge the fourth quarter labour force survey report reflect about 860 000 people employed in primary agriculture (down 1% year on year), which is well above the long-term agricultural employment of 780 000. It is also important to note that this report also speaks about an increase in employment in private households by 54 000.
On your specific question about Government strategies to challenges posed by load shedding let me confirm that indeed Government is addressing the concern of energy security and supply.
You will know already that the Minister of Electricity is hard at work looking at potential measures to implement to avert load shedding.
This includes the extension of the use of coal fired earmarked for decommissioning. This we believe will contribute to stabilising the energy supply.
With regards to agriculture, be advised that the Department of Agriculture is working on the Master Plan for the sector. The intention of this plan is to trigger growth by improving both imports and exports for the sector.
END
19 May 2023 - NW1502
Singh, Mr N to ask the Minister in The Presidency for Electricity
(1) What are the reasons that the eThekwini Metropolitan Municipality residents in KwaZulu-Natal will face 22% higher electricity rates tariff from 1 July 2023 compared to other provinces once the city’s draft budget for 2023-24 is approved; (2) whether he will furnish Mr N Singh with the official guidelines for rate tariffs for the 2024-25 financial year; if not, why not; if so, what are the relevant details?
Reply:
(1) We advise the member to direct the question to the Department of Cooporative Governance and Traditional Affairs.
(2) The National Energy Regulator of South Africa (NERSA) is the regulatory authority, inter alia, on municipal electricity pricing guidelines. It publishes an annual determination of Municipal Tariff Guidelines and the revision of Municipal Tariff Benchmarks around May of each year, which is applicable to the following financial year (commencing in July 2023).
The public commenting period for the 2023/24 determination closed on 04 May 2023 and NERSA will accordingly publish their decision regarding the 2023/24 guidelines in due course.
19 May 2023 - NW1295
Ceza, Mr K to ask the Minister of Employment and Labour
What (a) local economic activities have recently been developed in rural municipalities such as the (i) Dr J S Moroka Local Municipality, (ii) Ngqushwa Local Municipality, (iii) Victor Khanye Local Municipality, (iv) Emakhazeni Local Municipality, (v) City of Matlosana Local Municipality, (vi) Maluti-a-Phofung Local Municipality and (vii) Nkomazi Local Municipality to discourage the influx of job seekers into urban areas and (b) is the time frame in this regard?
Reply:
PUBLIC EMPLOYMENT SERVICES
Public Employment Services (PES) is established by Section 5 of the Employment Service Act of 2014.
- The Department of Employment and Labour must render the following services free of charge to members of the public:
- Register work seekers on ESSA (Employment Services System of South Africa).
- Register learning or work opportunities received from employers.
- Match work seekers to opportunities and produce qualifying work seekers as per criteria requested by employers.
- Facilitate the placement of the work seekers into opportunities.
- Provide career counselling, life skills, psychometric assessments, and employability enhancements.
- Regulate private employment agencies
- Make recommendations to DHA before work visas are issued.
2 Labour centres in the Free State fall under Maluti-a- Phofung Local municipality. For the 2022/2023 financial year, their performance on registration of work and learning opportunities is as displayed below:
From the opportunities registered in 2022/2023 financial year. The 2 Labour centres placed work seekers into work and learning opportunities as displayed below:
LABOUR ACTIVATION PROGRAMME:
- 2 Companies were assisted for BUSINESS TURN AROUND AND RE-ENGINEERING: MALUTI- A- PHOFUNG LOCAL MUNICIPALITY
- ENTRAKO(PTY) LTD: 75 Jobs were Preserved and 14 new employees were appointed. Overall 89 jobs were preserved.
- ENTRAWOOD CC: 115 Jobs were preserved and 4 were created. Overall 119 jobs were preserved.
MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING
- The PES embarks to build upon a partnership strategy involving prospective actors in the labour market with the common objective to reduce unemployment, poverty and inequality in South Africa.
- This Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) aims to create a partnering- relationship between The Department of Employment and Labour through its Public Employment Services branch and stakeholders in order to promote co-operation and achieve employment objectives
- In 2022/2023 financial year, the department of Employment and Labour has entered into Memorandum of understanding with two stakeholders in the Maluti-a- Phofung Local municipality:
- MALUTI TVET COLLEGE
- MALUTI –A – PHOFUNG LOCAL MUNICIPALITY
Eastern Cape
It is very important to note that the Department of Employment and Labour does not create employment opportunities or develop Local Economic activities for job seekers but creates an enabling environment for a labour market that is conducive to investment, economic growth, employment creation and decent work. This is done by partnering with other Government Departments, Local Government, Government Entities including Institutions of Higher Learning and Private Sector in support of initiatives that assist in bringing in investment, economic growth, employment creation and decent work in the labour market and that is done through the main services as provided by the Department’s Public Employment Services (PES) as follows:
• Work seeker registration – Registration of work seeker in the Employment Services South Africa (ESSA) database
• Employment Counselling – Empowerment of work seekers with job hunting and job readiness counselling programmes
• Recruitment and Selection – Registration of employment and learning opportunities received from employers with the purpose of recruiting suitable candidates from the ESSA databased based on the selection criteria specified by the employer
• Placement – Placement of suitable candidates into registered job or learning opportunities based on the employers’ selection preference using the ESSA system.
• Labour Activation Programme (LAP) – UIF funded programme aimed at funding labour activation initiatives for training and placement of UIF beneficiaries back into the labour market.
(a) In Ngqushwa Local Municipality, through the Labour Activation Programme funding was awarded to Walter University, 50 young people have been skilled in Animal Production and New Venture Creation with the purpose of encouraging self-sustainability and self-employment with potential to develop into entrepreneurship and employment of other young people. The 50 young people were recruited from the villages of Ngqushwa Local Municipality.
For this financial year 2023/2024, Ngqushwa Local Municipality, through its Local Economic Development Unit, is going to partner with the Department in recruitment, selection and placement of young people in their approved planned projects as per their IDP which are as follows:
• Bee keeping and honey processing
• Livestock movement project with feedlot and abattoir
• Training of young people in Traffic related opportunities
• Life guards for the 42km coastal area
These young people from all the villages of Ngqushwa Local Municipality will be encouraged to register in the ESSA database so that they can be recruited and placed in these opportunities. The ESSA database ensures that only people from that particular municipality are recruited according to the specification of the employer. The selected young people will also be provided with work ethics training and other life skills training such as financial management skills.
The Department continuously engages with other social partners to ensure more opportunities are marketed to local young people ensuring that they benefit from opportunities in their regions thus avoiding their influx into urban areas.
(b) The identified project and partnership is for this current financial year i.e. 2023/2034
City of Matlosana Local Municipality
The Department of Employment and Labour through its Labour Activation Programme (LAP) implement various projects to enhance the employability of the unemployed, to enable entrepreneurship and preserve jobs by integrating the unemployed people back to the labour market. This is achieved through entering into partnerships with both private and public sector entities to implement job creation initiatives and training of the unemployed and underemployed for the purpose of re-integrating them with labour market and economic transformation.
In the City of Matlosana, the LAP has implemented the following interventions since 2021:
Sector |
Intervention |
No. of Learners |
Area of Training |
Employer |
Project Status |
MICT SETA |
Learnership |
27 |
Film and TV Production |
Platinum NW TV |
Completed in 2021 |
MICT SETA |
Learnership |
3 |
System Support |
52 Benji |
Completed in 2021 |
MICT SETA |
Learnership |
1 |
System Support |
Sediko Primary School |
Completed in 2021 |
MICT SETA |
Learnership |
1 |
System Support |
Hotspot Café Internet and Business Solution |
Completed in 2021 |
MICT SETA |
Learnership |
1 |
System Support |
REX Building |
Completed in 2021 |
THENSA(Technological Higher Education Network South Africa) |
Learnership |
9 |
Environmental Practice |
A & P Scrap Metal Paper and Waste |
Project put on hold in 2021 due to contractual issues. To resume in 2023 |
TOTAL |
42 |
The following interventions are in the pipeline for implementation during 2023/2024 financial year
Sector |
Area |
No. Learners |
Project Status |
Media |
Matlosana |
300 |
Submission on route for DG approval |
Agriculture |
Matlosana |
7000 |
Submission on route for DG approval |
Hospitality, Sports, Media, Health, Textile |
Matlosana |
1000 |
Submission on route for DG approval |
Total |
|
8300 |
In addition, the DEL through Public Employment Services (PES), plays a significant role in coordinating programmes that contribute towards the reduction of unemployment, poverty and inequality across four districts in the North West Province. For the City of Matlosana, 1770 work seekers have been placed on various opportunities through the PES Programme since 2017:
Placement Opportunity Type |
Sector |
Area |
No. Workseekers |
Formal Job |
Various |
Matlosana |
588 |
Internship |
Various |
Matlosana |
46 |
Learnership |
Various |
Matlosana |
243 |
Projects |
Various |
Matlosana |
867 |
Total |
|
1770 |
19 May 2023 - NW1363
Masango, Ms B to ask the Minister of Social Development
(1)What (a) is the full breakdown of the total amount that was spent on the venue, catering and gifts for guests attending the Free State Regional Office of the SA Social Security Agency International Women’s Day event on 28 March 2023, (b) number of persons (i) were invited to the event and (ii) attended, (c) was the purpose of the event and (d) are the reasons that a government venue was not used for the event; (2)Whether there is a National Treasury instruction that allows for such events and buying of gifts for employees; (3)Whether she will furnish Ms B S Masango with a copy of the (a) National Treasury instruction; and if not, what legal instrument allows for the events and buying of gifts; if so, (b) concept document that established the Women’s Forum; if not, why not in each case; if so, what are the relevant details in each case?
Reply:
1. (a)The breakdown of the amount spent at the conference is as follows:
1. The amount for venue hire – R 185 483.50
2. Sound and PA system –R 43 412.50
3. Catering and refreshment – R 227 843.75
Total amount of the event including the service fee of R 31 971.78 from the travel agent amounts to R 488 711.53.
SASSA Free State did not procure gifts from the budget of the institution.
(b) (i) There were 250 officials who were invited to the event;(ii) and 214 officials attended the event.
(c) Please refer to the attached concept document.
(d) The biggest venues in a form of boardrooms in government departments that SASSA Free State normally uses are from Premier’s Department, Department of Health and National Department of Public Works. All these three government departments venues cannot accommodate 250 officials with round tables set up. For this reason, a private venue was procured.
2. SASSA Free State relied on paragraph (a) 4.15 and 4.30 of the National Treasury Instruction Note No.2 of 2016 / 2017. In that it allows for catering of officials on forums and hiring of venues.
The gifts were not procured by SASSA Free State.
3. (a) A copy of National Instruction Note No.2 of 2016/2017 is hereby provided.
(b) A concept document is attached.
19 May 2023 - NW1383
Cachalia, Mr G K to ask the Minister of Public Enterprises
(1)(a) What total volume of (i) ferrous and (ii) non-ferrous scrap metal in terms of (aa) type and grade and (bb) value and weight has been auctioned by Transnet in the period 1 January 2021 up to the latest specified date for which information is available and (b) to which companies and/or entities. (2)(a) what total volume of (i) ferrous and (ii) non-ferrous scrap metal in terms of: (aa) type and grade and (bb) value and weight has been sold privately and/or otherwise acquired from Transnet in the specified period up to the latest specified date for which information is available and (b) to which companies and/or entities?
Reply:
According to the information received from Transnet
(1)(a)&(b), the following two tables provide a summary of the ferrous and non-ferrous scrap sales by auction.
a) Table 1: Auctioned ferrous scrap by type, buyer, tonnage and value.
b) Table 2: Auctioned non-ferrous scrap by type, buyer, tonnage, and value.
(2) (a) and (b) table 3 below provides a summary of ferrous scrap sold to three contracted private companies (foundries), following a procurement process in February 2022.
(2)(c) Table 3: Ferrous scrap sold to the three contracted foundries, by types of material, tonnages, and value sold.
Remarks: Reply: Approved / Not Approved
Melanchton Makobe P J Gordhan, MP
Acting Director-General Minister of Public Enterprises
Date: Date:
19 May 2023 - NW1375
Essack, Mr F to ask the Minister of Public Enterprises
What total amount has (a)(i) Alexkor, (ii) Denel, (iii) Eskom, (iv) SA Forestry Company Limited, (v) SA Airways and (vi) Transnet paid in dividends to the Government over the past five years and (b) the Government paid in bailouts to each of the listed entities in the specified period?
Reply:
1. There is no reference in the final Annual Financial Statements for each of the financial years ended 31 March 2018 to 31 March 2021 of any dividend having been paid by Alexkor SOC Ltd. There is not a dividend declaration included in the currently unaudited Annual Financial Statements at 31 March 2022. Given that Alexkor SOC Ltd (nor its 51% owned joint venture PSJV) has not addressed maintenance backlogs and both fatal and non-fatal non-compliance with the Mine Health and Safety Act requirements for the past 6 years, it will not be possible, or financially prudent to pay a dividend at 31 March 2023.
2. There has been no government bailout in the specified period.
According to information received from DENEL
a) Denel has not paid any dividends to the Government over the past five years.
b) Denel received the following amounts from the Government
Year ended 2018/2019 -
2019/2020 1,800,000,000.00
2020/2021 576,000,000.00
2021/2022 3,068,886,261.73
2022/2023 3,582,700,000.00
9,027,586,261.73
According to information received from Eskom:
ESKOM HOLDINGS SOC LTD |
||
a) Dividends (Rand) |
b) Government support (R’ billion) |
|
FY2019 |
0 |
23 |
FY2020 |
0 |
49 |
FY2021 |
0 |
56 |
FY2022 |
0 |
31.7 |
FY2023 |
0 |
21.9 |
Total |
0 |
181.6 |
According to information received from SAFCOL:
Financial Year |
Dividend Amount |
Government Bailouts |
2022/23 |
R1 Million (declared at AGM of 2021/22). |
None |
2021/22 |
None |
None |
2020/21 |
None |
None |
2019/20 |
None |
None |
2018/19 |
None |
None |
According to information received from SAA
a) Dividends over the past five years:
b) Shareholding funding to SAA is as follows:
YEAR |
AMOUNT |
2018/19 |
R5.0bn to fund operations and working capital |
2019/20 |
R5.5bn to fund working capital and lender debt |
2020/21 |
R18.275bn to fund business rescue |
2021/22 |
R6.778bn (R4.078bn to fund legacy debt and R2.7 bn for subsidiaries |
2022/23 |
R1.583bn to fund legacy lender debt |
According to information received from Transnet
a) No dividends have been paid by Transnet to Government in the past five years.
b) Transnet received R5.837 billion in January 2023, with R2.937 billion representing disbursement for the repair of flood damages suffered by Transnet during April 2022 and R2.9 billion to accelerate the repair and maintenance of freight rail locomotives.
Remarks: Approved / Not Approved
Melanchton Makobe PJ Gordhan, MP
Acting Director-General Minister
Date: Date:
19 May 2023 - NW1535
Ismail, Ms H to ask the Minister in The Presidency for Electricity
With reference to the state of disaster that has been declared due to the load shedding crisis, what are the reasons that Rand Water reservoirs and all other water reservoirs and/or feeds and systems are not exempt from load shedding as it directly impacts the supply of water to residents?
Reply:
The NRS048-9 specification states that bulk potable water supply points should be exempted from loadshedding where the network allows this. The issue is that the bulk water supply points very rarely have the necessary independent network connections that would allow this to happen, and the water pumps are distributed very widely in the electrical networks, so excluding them would mean unacceptably large amounts of load would not be available for loadshedding, reducing the effectiveness of the loadshedding system as a tool to stabilise the Grid.
End.
19 May 2023 - NW1331
Clarke, Ms M to ask the Minister of Health
(1)What is the average waiting time at public (a) clinics and (b) hospitals for primary healthcare services (i) nationally and (ii) in each province; (2) what is the average waiting time for surgeries at public healthcare facilities in the Republic (a) nationally and (b) in each province; (3) what (a) is the current surgeries backlog and (b) procedures have a backlog (i) nationally and (ii) in each province?
Reply:
1. (a) (i) and (ii)
The Ideal Health Facility Framework measures the average time that a patient spends in a Primary Health Care (PHC) facility. It is recommended that patients should not wait longer than 3 hours in the 8-hour facilities. The table below shows percentages for the provinces in terms of PHC facilities that have waiting times less than 3 hours.
PROVINCE |
CLINICS |
COMMUNITY HEALTH CENTRES |
Eastern Cape |
75% |
74% |
Free State |
82% |
70% |
Gauteng |
99% |
95% |
KwaZulu-Natal |
94% |
80% |
Limpopo |
91% |
96% |
Mpumalanga |
94% |
86% |
Northern Cape |
78% |
75% |
Northwest |
69% |
68% |
Western Cape |
88% |
77% |
National Average |
86% |
80% |
The average for PHC facilities (Clinics and Community Health Centers) and hospitals for the country:
- An average of eighty six percent (86%) of all clinics have an average waiting time not longer than 3 hours, ranging from 69% in the Northwest Province to 99% in Gauteng.
- Eighty percent (80%) of all CHC’s have an average waiting time not longer than 3 hours, ranging from 68% in Northwest to 96% in Limpopo province.
(b) The average waiting time for all District and Regional hospitals in all the nine (9) Provinces ranges between 60 to 120 minutes.
(2) The information on the average waiting time for surgeries at public healthcare facilities in the Republic (a) nationally and (b) in each province changes daily as new cases arise. Provincial departments of health continuously strive to reduce surgical backlogs.
(3) The information on current backlogs and procedures with backlogs is not readily available. Provinces have been requested for an update and this will be provided on receipt.
Table 2 below provides information received as at end of October 2022 and the situation may be different currently.
Table 2: information on surgical backlogs provided by provinces as of 15 September and end of October 2022.
Province |
Total number of backlogs on surgeries July to September as reported on the 15 September 2022 (PQ 2474) |
Total number of backlogs on surgeries as at end of October 2022 |
Eastern Cape |
5373 |
Information not submitted |
Free State |
2947 |
6885 |
Gauteng |
13433 |
32017 |
KwaZulu Natal |
17906 |
18906 |
Limpopo |
45690 |
12373 |
Mpumalanga |
3005 |
4286 |
Northwest |
5531 |
7922 |
Northern Cape |
4000 |
3937 |
Western Cape |
77139 |
77139 (Same figure submitted as at July 2022 -Not updated) |
Table 3 below provides information received from provinces regarding steps taken to address specified surgical backlogs as of October 2022.
Table:3 Steps have been taken to address the specific backlogs as at end of December 2022
Province |
What steps have been taken to address the specified backlog |
Eastern Cape |
Information not provided |
Free State |
|
Gauteng |
|
KwaZulu Natal |
|
Limpopo |
|
Mpumalanga |
Rob Ferreira Hospital:
Witbank Hospital:
Ermelo Hospital:
Mapulaneng Hospital:
|
Themba Hospital:
|
|
Northern Cape |
Information not provided |
Northwest |
|
Western Cape |
|
END.
19 May 2023 - NW1446
Mkhonto, Ms C N to ask the Minister of Employment and Labour
What monitoring tools does his department have to ensure that private companies underwrite and comply with the provisions of the Compensation for Occupational Injuries and Diseases Act, Act 130 of 1993, thereby serving workers in accordance with the specified Act?
Reply:
The Compensation Fund systems ensures employers register with the Fund and submit compensation claims for their workers.
The Fund’s monitoring tools for employers’ compliance are the following:
- Flagging of employers on the system with discrepancies in returns of earnings
- On site auditing of employers’ Return of Earnings for accuracy and completeness.
- Inspectors conducting on site visits to determine validity of submitted information
- Telephonic and onsite engagements to verify information
19 May 2023 - NW1569
Hlengwa, Mr M to ask the Minister in The Presidency for Electricity
Whether the Republic has experienced stages 7 and 8 of load shedding since he assumed office; if not, what is the position in this regard; if so, what are the full and relevant details?
Reply:
As of 12:00 on 8 May 2023, Stage 6 loadshedding is the highest stage of loadshedding to be implemented in South Africa. Stage 7 or 8 load-shedding have never been implemented. The NRS048-9 Code of Practice differentiates between loadshedding and load curtailment, the latter being the instructed, partial reduction of demand from large industrial customers. On occasion, load curtailment, up to Stage 4, has been implemented in conjunction with Stage 6 loadshedding. Each stage of load curtailment is approximately 5% of the large customer demand with Stage 4 load curtailment being up to 1000MW of demand that is removed from the power system.
End.
19 May 2023 - NW1310
Arries, Ms LH to ask the Minister of Social Development
(1)Whether she has been informed that the SA Social Security Agency offices in Limpopo recently closed their doors while beneficiaries and applicants had to wait until staff members returned from attending funerals; if not, what is the position in this regard; if so, (2)Whether the specified practice is acceptable; if not, what consequence management actions have been instituted against each official; if so, what are the relevant details?
Reply:
1. The SASSA Polokwane Local Office located at Schoeman Street, lost one of its officials through death. Guided by clause 6.2.4 of the SASSA Bereavement policy, a memorial service of the departed colleague was arranged by the local office staff with the permission of the family.
The memorial was scheduled for the 09 March 2023 at 12H00 in the Seshego Hospital Hall. The local office management prepared and submitted a request to the Regional management which was duly approved, to hold a memorial service and arrange that skeletal staff remain in the office.
Three (3) officials out of fourteen (14) staff members, were identified to ensure continued service delivery. It transpired that these officials upon seeing that there were no clients to be serviced at about 14H00, decided on their own accord to join the rest of the staff at the memorial service. The time of their departure was corroborated by the security guard who was on duty.
The Regional Manager did not inform the Minister and the CEO of this occurrence disciplinary measures were effected upon receipt of complaints from customers.
2. Leaving an office unattended is not acceptable and if this happens, it has to be under exceptional circumstances permitted by the Regional Executive Manager with the CEO sanctioning it. Since the behaviour of the three (3) officials were regarded as untoward, corrective disciplinary measures were taken and they were all served with written warning(s) for unauthorised closure of the office.